Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont returned to Spain on Thursday after nearly seven years in exile, despite an arrest warrant being issued against him.
Puigdemont appeared in Barcelona in the morning, accompanied by politicians from his liberal Junts party, and addressed a group of supporters.
“They have been persecuting us for seven years, just because we wanted to give a voice to the people of Catalonia,” he said.
Puigdemont tried to lead Catalonia to independence in a referendum in 2017, but it was declared illegal.
He is at risk of arrest because the judiciary accuses him of personal enrichment.
According to a media report, Puigdemont rejected the police’s offer of an organised and discreet arrest.
Puigdemont plans to attend the planned election of socialist Salvador Illa to the region’s parliament later in the day, although a large police contingent is in place to prevent this.
Illa would be the first in a long time to hold the position of opposing the secession of Catalonia from Spain.
Illa’s party emerged as the strongest force in the early elections in May, but needs the support of the left-wing separatist party ERC, which he won by making concessions on finances and the promotion of the Catalan language.
The second largest separatist party, Junts, opposed the deal.
