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Catalonia votes

People outside a polling station in Barcelona on Sunday, prior to a symbolic vote on independence of Catalonia from Spain. Photo: LLuis Gene/AFP

Catalan vote: turnout over 30 percent by 6pm

Updated: Polls closed at 8pm on Sunday in Catalonia's symbolic vote on independence from Spain, with nearly two million people having cast their ballot by 6pm, according to figures from the regional government. READ

David Moyes has been out of work since being sacked by Manchester United in April. AFP Photo/Royaume Aumi

Man Utd flop Moyes set for Spain move: reports

Former Manchester United manager David Moyes is set to make a return to football with La Liga strugglers Real Sociedad, various Spanish media sources reported on Sunday. READ

Rescue crews end emergency personel stand near a bus that crashed off the highway near Cieza, Murcia killing 14 people and injuring at least 30 more. Photo: AFP/STR

Fourteen dead in horror Spanish coach crash

Updated: Fourteen people died when a coach plunged into a ravine in southeastern Spain while at least 30 others were injured in the worst such accident in the country for 13 years, officials said on Sunday. READ

Barcelona port: Shutterstock

Catalan firms split on independence benefits

While Catalonia's leaders wrestle with Spain over the right to independence, companies in the rich region are arguing among themselves about whether a breakaway would be good for business. READ

How many seats are there in the lower house of the Spanish parliament. Photo: AFP

How well do you know your Spanish politics?

Think you've finally got to grips with the confusing world of Spanish politics? Then take The Local's test and prove it to the world. READ

Arts

Musician and composer Jordi Savall turned the prize down saying the Spanish government had shown a "shocking indifference and complete incompetence" when it came to art. Lionel Bonaventure/AFP

Angry artists snub prizes from 'indifferent' ministry

Spanish photographer Colita has become the second artist in just over a week to reject an award from Spain’s Education and Culture Ministry this autumn amid discontent over government policies for the arts. READ

When the bank manager emerged from his office, the customer said he was going to beat the hell out of him. Photo of €5 bank note: Shutterstock

Man gets two years jail for €5 bank theft

An angry bank customer who jumped over a counter and helped himself to €5 ($6.20) he felt was owed to him after account charges wiped out his bank balance has been sentenced to two years behind bars. READ

The mayor of Victoria in summer banned women in Muslim outfits from swimming in the city's swimming pools. File photo: Glenn R Carter.

Bus driver blocks entry for woman in burqa

The driver of a public bus in Vitoria on Thursday refused to allow a woman on board because she was wearing a Muslim veil which covered her face, the latest flare up in the Basque city over tolerance of Islamic customs. READ

Pablo Iglesias, the head of Spain's upstart Podemos party, making a speech at a party rally in October. Photo: Dani Pozo/AFP

'Maybe they'll shoot you': Podemos chief warned

A local politician with Spain's ruling Popular Party has caused outrage after launching a Facebook assault on the leader of Podemos, a radical party which is threatening to cause a major upset in next year's general elections. READ

Royal corruption

Princess Cristina and her husband Iñaki Urdangarin, pictured in 2012. Photo: Rafa Rivas/AFP

Confirmed: princess to face tax fraud charges

Spain's Princess Cristina will stand trial on charges of tax fraud but accusations of money laundering against her have been dropped, judges in Majorca announced on Friday, although she could still avoid being the first royal to face court. READ

Features

Spain's stunning Alhambra Islamic palaces: Shutterstock

Take The Local's Spanish history quiz

Spain is full of famous places, faces and names. But how well do you know the history of this amazing country? Find in The Local's latest quiz! READ

The Local List

You had better listen up. Photo of woman with wooden spoon: Shutterstock

Top ten: things your Spanish 'mamá' says

Spanish mothers are renowned for their close relationships with their children. But while they may come across as over-protective, they ultimately do it because they care. Here, The Local lists ten things she might say. READ

Cinema prize

Antonio Banderas has starred in over 100 movies, playing Benito Mussolini and Che Guevara along the way. Screen grab/YouTube

Gallery: Hits and misses of Antonio Banderas

The Málaga-born actor who cut his teeth with Pedro Almodóvar before conquering Hollywood is to be awarded the Goya (or Spanish Oscar) of Honour for lifetime achievement by Spain's Film Academy. Here The Local casts an eye over some of the best and worst films he's starred in. READ

Spanish Face of the Week

Francisco Nicolás Gómez Iglesias was one of just 2,000 people at the proclamation party for Spain's new king Felipe (pictured) in June. File photo: Andrew Burton/Getty Images/AFP

Exposed: student conman who fooled king

A 20-year-old student from an elite business school who was arrested last week on suspicion of swindling, forging documents and impersonating public officials cozied up to the cream of Spanish society, even managing to attend King Felipe VI’s proclamation. READ

Spanish Language

Photo of a couple: Shutterstock

Top Ten: best new Spanish words

Spain’s royal language watchdog, the RAE, has just published its massive new dictionary. Here The Local lists ten of the best words appearing for the very first time for your reading pleasure. READ

More News

Ebola outbreak

File photo of Ebola suits: Shutterstock

Spanish ambulance staff buy own Ebola suits

Ambulance staff in the southern city of Cádiz have splashed out on their own Ebola protection suits, saying the garments they were provided with weren't up to the job. READ

Ringless fingers. Photo of priest: Shutterstock

Beggar steals ring from bishop’s finger

The bishop of the Spanish city of San Sebastián was on Thursday surprised by a thief who asked for money from the clergyman before making off with his episcopal ring. READ

Catalonia votes

Pro-independence 'Estelada' Catalan flags and a banner reading "9N. It is normal to vote." in Vic, near Barcelona, ahead of Sunday's symbolic vote on independence for Catalonia from Spain. Photo: AFP

Madrid 'willing to accept' private Catalan poll

Just three days out from Sunday's symbolic vote in Catalonia on the issue of independence from the rest of Spain, Madrid on Thursday said it was prepared the vote to go ahead as long as it was organized by private groups and not public bodies. READ

Spanish science

Photo of blood transfusion: Shutterstock

Doctors 'cure' HIV patient with blood transplant

Spanish scientists are hopeful blood transplants from the umbilical cord of people with genetic resistance to HIV could provide a future treatment option in the battle against the Aids-causing virus after managing to 'cure' a patient in just three months. READ

Catalonia votes

Members of Catalonia's Mossos d'Esquadra police force: Photo of police in Barcelona: Shutterstock

Catalan cops to stop vote if ordered: security chief

A leading Catalan government official has admitted that the security forces would have to be deployed against Sunday’s consultation on independence if they were told to do so by the courts. READ

Photo: Dani Pozo/AFP

The Dummies' Guide to Spain's Podemos Party

Seven months ago almost nobody had heard of them. Now Podemos is the hottest political property in Spain. But just who are they, what do they want, and could they win the country's next elections? The Local takes a look behind the curtains. READ

Property

Puerto Banús has the most expensive real estate in Andalusia, according to real estate firm TecniTasa. Photo of port: Shutterstock

Revealed: Spain's most expensive addresses

A new study reveals the location of some of the priciest — and cheapest — real estate in Spain. Read on to find out if your neighbourhood makes the grade. READ

Catalonia votes

File photo: Lluis Gene/AFP

Volunteers drive Catalan vote on independence

People in Spain's Catalonia region will be going to the poll on Sunday to cast their ballot in a symbolic vote on the issue of independence from the rest of Spain, but who are the army of volunteers behind the controversial ballet? READ

Football focus

Cristiano Ronaldo wasn't eating humble pie when he received the Golden Boot on Wednesday for being Europe's joint top scorer last season. Photo: Javier Soriano/AFP

'I'll be one of the best ever': Cristiano Ronaldo

World Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo believes he will be considered one of the greatest footballers to have ever played the game by the time he retires. READ

Immigration crisis

African migrants watched by a Spanish Civil Guard officer on top of the border fence in Melilla in October. Photo: Blasco Avellaneda/AFP

Spain to put asylum offices on African border

In an apparent change of tune on immigration, the government has announced that it will make it easier for refugees to ask for asylum in Spain's North African enclaves. READ

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From our other editions:

After his release from prison Mahmoud burned his Austrian passport in a video. Photo: Site

Austrian jihadist poses in front of corpses

Austrian Islamist Mohamed Mahmoud, who was released from custody in Turkey in August, has published a photo of himself on the Internet posing in front of several half naked, decapitated corpses. READ

Photo: Basel-Country cantonal police

Basel firefighters rescue ass stuck in manhole

Firefighters in the canton of Basel Country faced an unusual rescue mission at the weekend — rescuing a donkey stuck in a manhole. READ

Photo: DPA

German train drivers to strike for 98 hours

UPDATE: German train drivers will go on their biggest strike in recent history, lasting for four days, from this Wednesday until Monday, union GDL said on Tuesday afternoon. READ

Opinion

The author says that after she and her husband uprooted their entire lives and moved to Denmark, the government has pulled the rug out from under them. Photo: Submitted

Green card changes 'unjust and destructive'

As green card holders prepare to protest the government's overhaul of the scheme on Monday at Christiansborg, the wife of one green card holder shares how the "fundamentally unjust, financially harmful and discriminatory" changes will affect her family. READ

French Face of the Week

France's reality TV star Nabilla was arrested for the alleged attempted murder of her boyfriend. Photo: AFP

Nabilla - Who is 'France's Kim Kardashian'?

Reality TV star Nabilla Benattia - the self-dubbed French Kim Kardashian - was arrested near Paris on Friday on suspicion of attempting to murder her boyfriend. Here's a closer look at the how the infamous Made in France star rose to prominence. READ

The Local List

Photos (left to right): Pizza: Shutterstock; Tower of Pisa: Shutterstock; Berlusconi: AFP

Ten things you should never say to an Italian

To you Italy may be all about the mafia, "bunga bunga" parties and pizzerias. But not to Italians. Here's a list of ten things you should never say to an Italian, unless you want salt in your coffee and water in your wine. READ