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Catalonia elections

Photo: AFP

Threats and insults fly in the run up to Sunday's Catalan breakaway vote

Spanish leaders raised pressure on Catalonia over its independence drive warning that it would put pensions and bank deposits at risk, as insults and threats heated up campaigning for the region's crucial election.

Refugee crisis

Photo: AFP

EU ministers strike emergency quota deal to distribute refugees

EU interior ministers voted to distribute 120,000 refugees within Europe at emergency talks on Tuesday amid deep divisions over how to handle the continent's worst migration crisis in decades.

Photo: Christof Stache / AFP

Spanish football hero Xabi Alonso categorically denies tax fraud claim

The Bayern Munich midfielder has categorically denied any wrongdoing after claims that he is being investigated for defrauding the Spanish tax authorities.

The Riu Spanish hotel chain is set to close its hotels in Tunisia. Photo: rui.com

Spanish hotel chain doubts Tunisia future after deadly terrorist attack

Riu Hotels and Resorts is to pull out of Tunisia following June’s terror attack at one of its hotels in which 38 foreign tourists were killed.

David Pla (R) and Iratxe Sorzábal (L) are the presumed leaders of the Basque terrorist group. Photo: Interior Ministry

Two leaders of the Basque terrorist group Eta arrested in French village

Two political leaders of the Basque separatist group Eta have been arrested in southern France, the Spanish interior minister said on Tuesday.

Catalan independence debate

Pro-separatist Catalans marched for independence on September 11th. Photo: AFP

Catalonia and Madrid wage battle of diplomacy over independence

From London to Washington via Brussels, a diplomatic battle is rumbling as Spain's northeastern Catalonia region vies to win international backing for its contested drive for independence from Madrid.

Anima Axelsson jumped into Malaga's bullring to comfort a dying bull. Photo: Peta

Swedish stripper interrupts Malaga bullfight to try to comfort dying bull

Animal rights charity Peta has hailed the "bravery" of a Swedish adult model who jumped into a bullring in southern Spain to comfort the dying animal.

Startups

Housers founders Álvaro Luna (left) and Tono Brusola (right). Photo: Housers.

The startup transforming everyday Spaniards into real estate investors

Seven years after Spain's property bubble spectacularly burst, a Madrid startup is helping to get the Spanish real estate market back on its feet, using crowdfunding from everyday people.

The oldest signs of heavy metal pollution have been found in Gorham's Cave in Gibraltar. Photo: Gibmetal77/Wikimedia

Prehistoric humans were earliest polluters, Gibraltar cave study finds

The oldest signs of heavy metal pollution caused by human activity, dating from the early Stone Age, have been found in caves in Spain and Gibraltar, officials said on Monday.

Carmen Balcells died in Barcelona on Sunday. Photo: El Diario.es

Carmen Balcells, legendary literary agent to Nobel prize winners, dies

Spain's Carmen Balcells, a literary agent who represented some of the biggest names in 20th-century Spanish language literature has died aged 85.

Features

My Spanish career

$'It's possible to find great talent for a fraction of the cost of elsewhere'$

Thomas Evans (right) is the founder of Start Ups Made in Spain. Screen grab: Startups Made in Spain/YouTube

'It's possible to find great talent for a fraction of the cost of elsewhere'

The Local talks to Thomas Evans, the founder of Start Ups Made in Spain, about why Spain is becoming attractive for investors.

The Local list

The San Sebastian International Film Festival runs from September 18th and 26th. Photo: Gari Garaialde

Ten things you need to know about Spain's San Sebastián Film Festival

The Local counts down ten essential facts about the most important film festival in the Spanish speaking world, as it gets underway in the Basque seaside city.

Archive photo of a Spanish classroom. Photo: Cristina Quicler / AFP.

Wanted: Family with two kids to save village school in eastern Spain

A village in rural Valencia is offering a house and job to a family with at least two kids that is willing to move in to save the local school from shutting its doors for good.

The Local list

A Spanish Red Cross volunteer comforts a refugee after the death of his friend in at Tarifa's harbour. Photo: Marcos Moreno /AFP.

Six simple ways to do your bit and help refugees if you live in Spain

While Spain faces pressure to take a bigger share of the hundreds of thousands of migrants arriving at Europe's borders, The Local takes a look at ways that individuals can make a difference.

There is even an art to tasting the grape itself. Photo: AFP

Grape Escape: Discovering the art of winemaking in the vineyards of La Rioja

There's more to wine than tasting it as Sophia Smith Galer discovered on a trip to the rustic vineyards of the Rioja region.

More news

World Alzheimer's Day

Spain's Queen Sofia has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Photo: Esteban Cobo/AFP

Queen Sofia nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for Alzheimer's work

Spain’s Queen Sofia, mother of current monarch King Felipe, has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by a US university for her commitment to research into Alzheimer's Disease.

A man drove to his test despite not having a license. Archive photo of a man driving: Eduardo Merille/Flickr

Man arrested for taking spin behind the wheel - to his own driving test

The man, from northeastern Spain, had driven himself to his own driving theory test, despite not having a license.

Catalan independence debate

A Catalan independence demonstration. Photo: Ivan McClellan / Wikimedia Commons.

Separatists set to win a majority in Catalonia's upcoming election: poll

Pro-independence parties look set to win a majority in the upcoming Catalan regional election, the latest polls reveal, while Catalans remain skeptical about the likelihood of independence.

Catalan independence debate

Bank of Spain governor, Luis Linde, has warned against Catalan independence. Photo: Angel Diaz/AFP

Spain's central bank warns against prospect of Catalan independence

Spain's central bank on Monday warned of financial risks from the Catalonia region's potential secession from Spain, days ahead of an election there framed as an indirect vote on independence.

202 people cut hams at the same time, smashing the previous world record. Photo: Jorge Guerrero/AFP

Hamazing! Spanish town smashes world record for most ham-slicing

The town of Sierra de Yeguas, in Malaga, hogged the limelight on Sunday when it smashed the world record for the most people cutting ham legs at once.

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From our other editions

Refugee crisis

An elderly man from Aleppo, Syria, waits for news of whether he can travel to Germany with his granddaughter. Photo: Kim Traill

Austria sends refugees to Slovakia

Just 18 of an agreed 500 Syrian asylum-seekers arrived in Slovakia on Thursday under a deal with EU neighbour Austria that has sparked protest in the village where they will stay temporarily.

EXPAT GUIDE | Presented by Geneva Relocation

Photo: Patrick Nouhailler

The biggest challenges of moving to Switzerland

Switzerland is one of the world’s best expat countries, with some of the highest living standards and a sophisticated, multilingual population. Yet moving to Switzerland can still be stressful and difficult if you don't do it right.

A Spezialeinsatzkommando (SEK) unit doing what they're supposed to. File photo: DPA

Elite cops destroy offices in chainsaw tantrum

Elite police officers reacted to an announcement on Tuesday that their unit was being dissolved due to accusations of bullying by attacking their own offices with a chainsaw.

A selfie posted to the teen's Instagram account. Photo: Instagram

Danish teen who killed mum ‘inspired by Isis’

UPDATED: A 15-year-old girl who murdered her mother was fascinated by the terror group Isis and viewed online Islamist propaganda including videos of beheadings.