Trump says Spain should stay united, opposes secession vote

September 26, 2017

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Spain should stay united, branding as "foolish" a looming secession vote by one of the country's regional governments. "I think that Spain is a great country and it should remain united," Trump said at a news conference following White House talks with Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy. "We're dealing with a great, great country and it should remain united."

Trump said he's been watching the situation unfold in the region of Catalonia, whose leaders have vowed to hold a referendum Sunday on independence from Spain. Spain's central government says such a vote would be illegal.

"I can say only, speaking for myself, I would like to see Spain continue to be united," Trump said when asked about the referendum, which is challenging Rajoy's leadership. Rajoy called the situation "just crazy" and said a referendum cannot be held because no one in the Catalan government is organizing it. He said the issue is causing division and heightening tensions in Spain.

"I want this to be resolved as soon as possible and I want us to go into a new stage where the rule of law, dialogue and common sense will prevail," Rajoy said. Trump didn't answer directly when asked later what advice he offered Rajoy on the issue, but said he thinks the people of Catalonia, which includes Barcelona, would stay with Spain.

"I bet you if you had accurate numbers and accurate polling, you'd find that they love their country, they love Spain and they wouldn't leave, so I'm just for a united Spain," Trump said. "I really think the people of Catalonia would stay with Spain. I think it would be foolish not to, if you're talking about staying with a truly great, beautiful and very historic country."

Trump also offered prayers and support to those affected by deadly attacks last month that killed 16 people in Barcelona and a nearby town. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility. "I want to assure the people of Spain that America stands with you in confronting this evil that threatens all of humanity," Trump said. "We will continue to deny the terrorists their funding, their territory, and any form of support for their wicked ideology."

Trump had said earlier Tuesday that the U.S. and Spain are allies in the fight against terrorism, saying they share notes and intelligence. He also thanked Spain at the news conference for contributing to a coalition of nations working to defeat IS, including training more than 30,000 members of the Iraqi security forces.

Rajoy said he told Trump that Spain would increase its commitment by contributing a new financial package to help rebuild Iraq.

Madrid tightens grip over Catalan spending to quash vote

September 15, 2017

MADRID (AP) — Spain's central authorities have increased their control over Catalonia's regional spending to make sure that no funds are diverted to paying for a suspended independence referendum, the country's finance minister said Friday.

Following the weekly meeting of the Spanish cabinet, Cristobal Montoro said the government is also giving Catalan officials 48 hours to comply with a new system that scrutinizes public payments in order "to guarantee that not one euro will go toward financing illegal acts."

Montoro told reporters the extraordinary controls were justified in order to pay civil servants and suppliers procuring services in education and health, among other essentials, while at the same time ensuring financial stability and defending the country's legal order.

Last week, Spain's constitutional court decided to suspend an independence referendum that Catalan leaders had penciled in for Oct. 1 while judges decide if it is unconstitutional, as the central government in Madrid has argued.

Separatist politicians in Catalonia — Spain's richest region that has Barcelona as its major city — are still pressing ahead with the referendum despite the ban and despite the launch of a criminal investigation into three-quarters of Catalonia's mayors who have supported the vote.

On Thursday, Catalan Vice President Oriol Junqueras, who is in charge of economic affairs in the northeastern region, said he would stop providing central authorities with weekly spending reports. Making these reports weekly instead of monthly, as Spain requires of all 17 regional governments, had been a measure imposed in July by Spain's finance authorities as preparations for the referendum escalated.

Junqueras dismissed the scrutiny as politically motivated and said the Catalan government would only send the monthly reports. The Madrid-based government has also rejected calls for dialogue from Catalonia's leading officials on framing a referendum because that can only be achieved by changing the country's constitution through a majority in the national parliament. Under Spanish law, a secession referendum can only be promoted by the central government. All voters in Spain also have the right to vote on issues related to sovereignty.

In a letter requesting discussions, Catalan President Carles Puigdemont, Junqueras, regional parliament president Carme Forcadell and Barcelona mayor Ada Colau accused Spain of launching "an offensive of repression without precedent."

"The prime minister can't make something illegal into something legal," said Inigo Mendez de Vigo, the spokesman for Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's cabinet as well as being Spain's culture minister. The prosperous Catalonia region generates a fifth of the country's 1.1-trillion euro economy. It enjoys ample self-government, running its own police, and has considerable powers over health and education. Taxes, foreign affairs, defense and infrastructures are in the hands of Spain's central authorities.

Catalan independence push puts Spanish border town on edge

October 05, 2017

SAN RAFAEL DEL RIO, Spain (AP) — The river that runs through San Rafael del Rio, a quiet rural town with a population of just over 500, provides a natural boundary between the Spanish regions of Catalonia and Valencia. Now residents are worried that the escalating conflict between Spanish and Catalan authorities will split the town in two.

"People are nervous and scared because they feel this is a free-fall," said Guadalupe Espinosa, a 47-year-old psychologist who lives on the Catalan side of the river. "I don't like armies or borders, but maybe we will have one here. Who knows?"

Catalan leaders have said they will declare independence for the northeastern region after receiving overwhelming support for secession in a weekend referendum that Spain declared illegal and tried to stop by force. That could have particular implications for San Rafael, where the border cutting through the town until now has been a mere curiosity.

Most of San Rafael, including the town hall, is in the Valencia region, which has no plans to leave Spain. But it shares with Catalonia irrigation, roads, electricity supply and even the phone dialing prefix. Mayor Domingo Giner downplayed the conflict's impact on the town, saying neighbors on either side of the Senia river co-exist peacefully.

"The town has other problems beyond defining its territorial entity," said Giner, a 55-year-old pig farmer who represents the conservative Popular Party of Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy. "We need to respect each other. Our residents understand Catalonia is part of them."

There was no outward sign of conflict this week in San Rafael, where a fountain sputtered peacefully on the main plaza as the occasional tractor rumbled by. A 100-meter (100-yard) bridge connects the main part of town with the Castell neighborhood on the Catalonian side. Some residents said they got along just fine, even though some identified as Catalans and others as Spaniards.

"Valencia and Catalonia are different, but even though the border exists, it's the same town," 20-year-old lifeguard Natzari Reverte said. But others, especially those old enough to remember Spanish dictator Gen. Francisco Franco's crackdown on separatism, said tensions have risen in recent years amid the growing animosity between Catalonia's pro-independence leaders and the Spanish government in Madrid.

"I have a brother who is pro-independence but we can't talk about it, because it gets tense, and I don't want to fight," said Hector Reverter, a 74-year-old retiree having pre-lunch beers with friends at a gas station restaurant on the outskirts of the town.

Only those living on the Catalan side were able to vote in the referendum, casting their ballots in the nearby Catalan town of Ulldecona. According to preliminary results, about 90 percent of ballots cast were for independence, but many opponents are believed to have ignored the referendum. Turnout was around 40 percent.

Reverter lives on the Catalan side but opposes independence and said he would move to the Spanish side if the river were turned into the external boundary of an independent Catalonia. "I don't want to see any border," Reverter said. "I want to die and not see it."

Catalan officials study date for independence declaration

October 04, 2017

MADRID (AP) — Catalonia's regional government is mulling when to declare the region's independence from Spain in the wake of a disputed referendum that has triggered Spain's most serious national crisis in decades.

The region's pro-independence president, Carles Puigdemont, who has said an independence declaration will come in a few days, is due to deliver a speech later Wednesday. Spain, which declared Sunday's referendum illegal and invalid, is bitterly opposed to any independence move. Spain's conservative government has said it will respond with "all necessary measures" to counter Catalan defiance, and is holding talks with opposition leaders to forge a consensus over what to do in response.

It's anybody's guess what might happen if the northeastern region of Catalonia does actually try to secede. Spain could intervene to take over the regional government or it could even declare a state of emergency and impose martial law.

In a special national address Tuesday night, Spain's King Felipe VI came out strongly against the actions of Catalan authorities, arguing that they had deliberately bent the law with "irresponsible conduct."

The Spanish state, he went on, needed to ensure constitutional order and the rule of law in Catalonia, which is the richest region of Spain. Catalonia says some 2.3 million people — less than half the region's electorate — voted in the referendum. Many of those opposed to independence are thought to have stayed at home after the referendum was deemed illegal by Spanish courts. Of those who voted, some 90 percent voted yes to independence.

Going down the independence route won't be easy for Catalonia. The region doesn't have any powers over defense, foreign affairs, taxes, ports or airports, all of which are in the hands of the Madrid government.

The crisis in Spain grew more acute Sunday when some 900 people were treated in hospital following clashes with police ordered to prevent to the vote. On Tuesday, huge crowds held street protests and unions staged a strike in Catalonia to protest against the alleged police brutality. There were no reports of trouble.

Spain's National Court on Wednesday said it will quiz two senior officers of Catalonia's regional police force and the leaders of two pro-Catalan independence civic groups who have been placed under investigation for sedition.

The court said the four will be questioned on Friday about their roles in demonstrations Sept. 20-21 in Barcelona when Spanish police arrested several Catalan government officials and raided offices in a crackdown on preparations for the referendum.

Spanish authorities say the demonstrations hindered the police operation. During the rallies, there were some disturbances and two police vehicles were thrashed. The four include regional police chief officer Josep Lluis Trapero and Jordi Sanchez, the head of the Catalan National Assembly that has been the main civic group behind the independence movement.

Giles contributed from Madrid.

A look at what might happen if Catalonia goes it alone

October 02, 2017

MADRID (AP) — The northeastern region of Catalonia, one of Spain's autonomous regions, is threatening to declare its independence from Spain following a disputed referendum that, it says, gave it a mandate to break away.

Spain, which declared the referendum illegal and invalid, says it will do all to maintain the country's unity and keep hold of the region of 7.5 million people centered around the port city of Barcelona.

The two would seem to be about to enter uncharted waters. Here's a look at how Spain got to this point and what may happen next.

DECLARING INDEPENDENCE

Catalan regional President Carles Puigdemont says he will keep his pledge to declare independence unilaterally following a claimed win for the "Yes" side in Sunday's disputed referendum.

The pro-independence leader says that under a Catalan law a win with more than 50 percent of "Yes" votes triggers a declaration of independence within 48 hours of the vote, regardless of the fact that the vote was held in extremely precarious circumstances and that turnout — even if true — was less than half of the electorate. That law was suspended by Spain's Constitutional Court, but Puigdemont and his government seem set to ignore this.

The independence declaration could happen as early as Wednesday or Thursday when the regional parliament meets.

WOULD CATALONIA BE RECOGNIZED AS A SEPARATE COUNTRY?

So far no country or international body has expressed any support for the Catalan government's independence drive, so any declaration of independence is likely to be rejected, at the beginning at least. The European Union is standing solidly behind Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and says Catalonia would be expelled from the bloc and the shared euro currency.

Economically it is impossible to predict if it could survive. Catalonia has an annual gross domestic product of about 215 billion euros ($257 billion) — the largest of the Spanish regions and greater than Greece's — but many of its goods are supplied by the Spanish state.

WHAT IMMEDIATE CHANGES MIGHT BE EXPECTED?

Besides the removal of Spanish flags from official buildings, it's hard to see what else Catalan authorities could do. The feeling is that the declaration would be a symbolic one. Catalonia does not have security forces sufficient to set up borders and key areas such as taxes, foreign affairs, defense, ports, airports and trains are in the hands of the Spanish government in Madrid. Spain also recently took virtually full control of Catalonia's spending.

SPAIN'S OPTIONS

Spain has two main options and both would be painful. The constitution's Article 155 allows the government to suspend, totally or partially, any region' self-government if it disobeys its constitutional obligations or attacks the general interests of Spain. Catalonia would first be warned and if it didn't rectify, the measures decided upon would be put to the Senate for approval, a simple matter for Rajoy as his party has a majority.

Possible measures could include placing the region's police under Spanish control. If necessary, Spanish police could enforce the measures. The other, more extreme alternative would be to declare a state of siege, should Spain's sovereignty be considered under attack — which a declaration of independence might constitute — and this could allow for the suspension of civil rights and imposition of martial law. It would need to be debated and approved by the lower house of parliament, a difficult matter as Rajoy lacks a majority there.

Neither option is likely to happen overnight. "The situation is really serious in Spain now," said constitutional law professor Fernando Simon of Spain's University of Navarra, who said Catalonia was basically already in a state of rebellion. He said either option would mean Spain would enter unknown territory.

A COMPROMISE

Given the current state of affairs this is the most desirable for all, but with neither side backing down, the least likely to happen. Both sides say they are open to dialogue but both put up conditions unacceptable to the other. Rajoy had insisted he couldn't discuss a referendum unless the constitution was changed, and invited Catalonia to work on changing it. The Catalan government said its right to self-determination must be respected first before talks could proceed. Catalonia now wants the EU to intervene, an unlikely prospect, and calls for international mediation, something Spain is not likely to agree to.

Catalonia urges mediation with Spain in secession dispute

October 02, 2017

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Catalan separatists called for international mediation with the Spanish government as they pushed ahead Monday with plans to declare unilateral independence this week after a violent police crackdown scarred a disputed secession referendum.

The referendum debacle only deepened Spain's most serious political crisis since democratic rule was restored in 1978. The violence on Sunday in the prosperous northeastern region left more than 890 civilians and 430 police injured when anti-riot squads moved into polling stations and dispersed voters.

Shocking videos and photos of police dragging people by the hair and kicking them were flashed around the globe, leading some European leaders to warn about any further escalation of violence. Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont said a regional parliamentary commission would investigate why Spain's anti-riot squads fired rubber bullets, smashed into polling stations and beat protesters with batons to disperse voters in the independence referendum that Spain opposed. He also urged the 5,000-strong contingent of special Spanish police forces deployed in Catalonia to leave immediately.

Puigdemont called Monday for the European Union "to stop looking the other way" and urged Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to accept international mediation in the crisis. He urged the EU to view Catalonia's desire to break away from Spain as a Europe-wide issue.

"This is not a domestic issue. The need for mediation is evident," Puigdemont said. Calls for restraint came from across Europe, including EU chief Donald Tusk, who appealed to Rajoy to "avoid further escalation and use of force" while agreeing that the independence vote was invalid. Several human rights organizations called for an impartial investigation into the violence.

Of the 893 civilians injured in the melee, two suffered serious wounds, Catalan health authorities said. The Interior Ministry said 39 police received immediate medical treatment and 392 others had scrapes and bruises.

But Spanish authorities commended the police, saying their response to the voting was professional and proportionate. And Spain's interior minister said the 5,000 extra officers deployed to Catalonia would stay as long as necessary.

"I don't think there was such a heavy hand, but in any case, they had to react," said Spanish Foreign Minister Alfonso Dastis, calling the police reaction videos "a matter of interpretation." Speaking in Rome, Dastis said "some of the pictures are real, some of them are not real" but that police had simply responded when people prevented them from doing their job.

Catalan officials say an overwhelming majority of the 2.26 million who voted supported independence from Spain — they said 90 percent — but the central government in Madrid has repeatedly condemned the referendum as unconstitutional and invalid.

The Catalan president said the regional parliament will be asked to declare independence this week after final results are announced — and plenary sessions are scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday. The euro and Spanish stocks fell Monday as investors tried to gauge what the weekend unrest in Catalonia means for the future of Spain and European unity.

The referendum fiasco brought Spain and Catalonia closer to a potentially disastrous showdown as each side said Sunday's events proved them right. Rajoy met with his conservative Popular Party members before seeking a parliamentary session to discuss how to confront Spain's most serious political crisis in decades. He also met with the leaders of the opposition Socialist and Citizens parties to discuss Spain's options, although no immediate consensus emerged.

The impasse developed after Catalan authorities decided to go ahead with Sunday's referendum even after Spain's Constitutional Court suspended it while assessing the claims by Rajoy's government that the vote was illegal. The court has previously ruled against unilateral secession attempts.

Amnesty International said the Spanish police used "excessive and disproportionate" force against people "passively resisting" a judge's order to impede the referendum. U.N. human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein called on Spain's government to ensure "thorough, independent and impartial investigations" of the violence.

Some Catalans said both sides bore some responsibility. "I think both sides involved committed grave mistakes," said Eric Tigra, 56. "But we must also highlight that if the people of Catalonia go out in the streets and you don't listen to them, then something is not working right."

In an editorial, the Spanish daily El Pais blamed the Catalan government for Sunday's "shameful" events but also criticized the Spanish government for its inability to tackle the crisis that began about seven years ago.

So far, most European governments, the U.S. and most international bodies have backed Spain in its stance against Catalan independence, fearing that Catalonia could unleash a wave of secessionist movements. French President Emmanuel Macron called Rajoy on Monday to offer support.

"These are times for unity and stability," EU spokesman Margaritis Schinas said, urging all sides in Spain to move from confrontation to dialogue. Catalonia, with the vibrant city of Barcelona as its capital, represents a fifth of Spain's economy. Polls consistently show that while most of its 7.5 million inhabitants favored a referendum, they are roughly evenly split on independence from Spain.

Those in favor of secession argue that the region contributes more to the national government than it receives in return. Catalans already enjoy a wide measure of autonomy but the central government still controls taxation and other financial levers, as well as infrastructure projects.

Ciaran Giles reported from Madrid.

Catalan government to meet to plan independence declaration

October 02, 2017

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Catalonia's government will hold a closed-door Cabinet meeting Monday to discuss the next steps in its plan to declare independence from Spain following a disputed referendum marred by violence. Regional officials say the vote, which Spain insists was illegal and invalid, shows that a majority favor secession.

The referendum debacle brought both Spain and Catalonia closer to a potentially disastrous showdown as each side said Sunday's events proved them right and neither looked prepared to cede ground. Catalan president Carles Puigdemont will chair the Cabinet meeting, which is expected to consider asking the regional parliament to vote on an independence declaration later in the week.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, meanwhile, will meet with ruling Popular Party leaders before seeking a parliamentary session to discuss how to confront the country's most serious crisis in decades.

He also called an afternoon meeting with the leader of the main opposition Socialist party to discuss Spain's options. Catalonia said preliminary poll results showed 90 percent favored independence after under half the electorate voted in a day in which regional officials say 844 people were injured in clashes with police. It wasn't immediately clear how many people were hospitalized. In addition, 33 police officers were injured.

Catalan leaders accused Spanish police of brutality and repression while the Spanish government praised the security forces for behaving firmly and proportionately. Videos and photographs of the police actions were on the front page of news media outlets around the world.

In an editorial, leading Spanish daily El Pais blamed the Catalan government for Sunday's "shameful" events but also criticized the Spanish government for its inability to tackle the crisis since it began about seven years ago. The newspaper said the day was "a defeat for our country."

So far, the European Union, the U.S. and most international bodies have backed Spain in its stance against Catalonia. Catalonia, whose capital is Barcelona, represents a fifth of Span's economy. Polls consistently show that while most of its 7.5 million inhabitants favored a referendum, they are roughly evenly split on independence from Spain.

"Yes" side wins Catalonia independence vote marred by chaos

October 02, 2017

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Catalonia's regional government declared a landslide win for the "yes" side in a disputed referendum on independence from Spain that degenerated into mayhem Sunday, with more than 800 people injured as riot police attacked peaceful protesters and unarmed civilians trying to cast their ballots.

Catalonia has "won the right to become an independent state," Catalan president Carles Puigdemont said after the polls closed, adding that he would keep his pledge to declare independence unilaterally if the "yes" side wins.

"Today the Spanish state wrote another shameful page in its history with Catalonia," Puigdemont added, saying he would appeal to the European Union to look into alleged human rights violations during the vote.

Catalan regional government spokesman Jordi Turull told reporters early Monday that 90 percent of the 2.26 million Catalans who voted chose the "yes" side in favor of independence. He said nearly 8 percent of voters rejected independence and the rest of the ballots were blank or void. He said 15,000 votes were still being counted.

The region has 5.3 million registered voters, and Turull said the number of ballots didn't include those confiscated by Spanish police during violent raids that aimed to stop the vote. No one knows what will happen if Catalan officials follow through on their pledge to use the vote as a basis for declaring independence, a provocation that would possible remove from Spain one of its most prosperous regions, including the coastal city of Barcelona, the regional capital.

Hundreds of police armed with truncheons and rubber bullets were sent in from other regions to confiscate ballots and stop the voting, and amateur video showed some officers dragging people out of polling stations by the hair, throwing some down stairs, kicking them and pushing them to the ground. Anguished, frightened screams could be heard.

Police were acting on a judge's orders to stop the referendum, which the Spanish government had declared illegal and unconstitutional — and Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said going forward with the vote only served to sow divisions.

In a televised address after the majority of polls closed Sunday, he thanked the Spanish police, saying they had acted with "firmness and serenity" — comments sure to anger Catalans. Spanish Foreign Minister Alfonso Dastis said the violence, while "unfortunate" and "unpleasant" was "proportionate."

"If people insist in disregarding the law and doing something that has been consistently declared illegal and unconstitutional, law enforcement officers need to uphold the law," Dastis told The Associated Press in an interview.

Catalans favoring a break with Spain have long wanted more than the limited autonomy they now have, arguing that they contribute far more than they receive from the central government, which controls key areas including taxes and infrastructure. The police aggression on Sunday was likely to only fuel the passion for independence, and the main separatist group urged the regional government to declare independence after the violent crackdown.

By day's end, Catalan health services said 844 civilians had been treated in hospitals for injuries, including two in serious condition and another person who was being treated for an eye injury that fit the profile of having been hit by a rubber bullet. Thirty-three police officers were also injured.

At the Pau Claris School in Barcelona, amateur footage filmed by one voter showed police roughing up unarmed people standing in their way. Amateur video from other locations showed similar tactics, with people seen being hit, kicked and thrown around by police, including elderly people with their dogs, young girls and regular citizens of all stripes. Many tried to shield themselves from being smacked on the head.

There were also some signs of provocation by activists. In footage released by the Spanish Interior Ministry, some protesters were seen throwing objects and metal barriers at riot police. Elisa Arouca, who was waiting to vote outside the Estel school in central Barcelona, reacted with anger when national police agents yanked her and other prospective voters out of the way, then smashed open the door and confiscated the ballot boxes.

She had been planning to vote in favor of keeping Catalonia part of Spain, but decided instead to join the march for independence. She moved to another polling station to try and cast her vote in favor of breaking away.

"I was always against independence, but what the Spanish state is doing is making me change my mind," she said. "The national police and civil guard are treating us like criminals." There was no organized campaign for the "no" side in the vote, which most national political parties boycotted because it lacked legal guarantees and was suspended by the courts. Polls in recent years have shown roughly half of the 7.5 million residents of the region want to remain a part of Spain.

Mari Martinez, a 43-year-old waitress, said she didn't vote. "I don't lean toward independence, because we are part of Spain," she said. "Today's violence is not good for anybody. We never should have gotten to this point. Politicians haven't done their job, and they should have reached an agreement a long time ago."

A member of the Israeli parliament, sent to observe the vote, said she was shocked by the use of rubber bullets by Spanish police against crowds of unarmed voters. "We did expect a normal democratic process," said Ksenia Svetlova, part of a delegation of 33 observers invited by Catalan officials. "We knew that a lot of police were here but still, you know, there should be a respect for the will of the people to vote regardless of what you think of the referendum."

Tensions were running so high that Barcelona played its soccer game against Las Palmas without fans after the team announced the match would be played behind closed doors shortly before kickoff, with thousands of soccer fans already outside the stadium. Barcelona wanted to postpone the game but said the Spanish league refused the request.

Manuel Condeminas, a 48-year-old IT manager who tried to block police from driving away with ballot boxes on Sunday, said police had kicked him and others before using their batons and firing the rubber bullets.

Elsewhere, civil guard officers, wearing helmets and carrying shields, used a hammer to break the glass of the front door and a lock cutter to break into the Sant Julia de Ramis sports center near the city of Girona that was being used as a polling station. A woman injured outside the building was wheeled away on a stretcher by paramedics.

Clashes broke out less than an hour after polls opened, and not long before Puigdemont, the Catalan regional president, was expected to turn up to vote at the sports center. Polling station workers reacted peacefully and broke out into songs and chants challenging the officers' presence. Puigdemont was forced to vote in Cornella de Terri, near the northern city of Girona, his spokesman said.

Associated Press writer Alex Oller contributed to this report from Barcelona, and Gregory Katz and Frank Griffiths contributed from London.

Spanish police fire rubber bullets near voters in Catalonia

October 01, 2017

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spanish riot police smashed their way into polling stations in Catalonia and fired rubber bullets Sunday at protesters outside one Barcelona polling station to try to halt a disputed independence referendum. Nearly 350 people, including some police, were injured in the melee, officials said.

The officers fired the rubber bullets while trying to clear protesters who were trying to prevent National Police cars from leaving after police had confiscated ballot boxes from the voting center. The Spanish government has ordered police to stop the voting process in Catalonia, saying it's illegal.

The chaotic confrontations led to a war of words as each side blamed the other for the deteriorating situation. "Police brutality will shame forever the Spanish state," Catalan President Carles Puigdemont said as crowds cheered.

Top Spanish officials defended the police actions. Police acted with "firmness and proportionality," declared Spanish deputy prime minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria, adding that authorities weren't going after voters but referendum material.

She accused the Catalan government of gross irresponsibility in staging the vote. "There hasn't been a referendum or the semblance of one," she said. Tensions have been on the rise since the vote was called in early September, crystalizing years of defiance by separatists in the affluent region, which contributes mightily to Spain's economy. As one of Spain's 17 autonomous regions, Catalonia enjoys ample rights but key areas such as infrastructure and taxes are in the hands of Madrid. Separatist Catalans have long complained the region is contributing too much to the state while not getting enough in return.

Catalonia's government spokesman said 337 people have been injured, some seriously, during the police crackdown Sunday and Spain's Interior Ministry said 11 police officers were injured. The regional government's spokesman, Jordi Turull, blamed the violence directly on Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy. He said actions by Spanish National Police and Civil Guard forces on Sunday were politically motivated and showed "a clear motivation to harm citizens."

Catalan international affairs director, Raul Romeva, said regional authorities would appeal to European authorities to examine the violations of human rights by Rajoy's government. Manuel Condeminas, a 48-year-old IT manager who tried to block police from driving away with the ballot boxes, said agents had kicked them before using their batons and firing the projectiles, which were ball-shaped.

Elsewhere, Civil Guard officers, wearing helmets and carrying shields, used a hammer to break the front door glass and a lock cutter to break into the Sant Julia de Ramis sports center near the city of Girona. At least one woman was injured outside the building and wheeled away on a stretcher by paramedics.

Clashes broke out less than an hour after polls opened, and not long before Catalonia regional President Carles Puigdemont was expected to turn up to vote at the sports center. Polling station workers inside the building reacted peacefully, breaking into songs and chants challenging the officers' presence.

Puigdemont was forced to vote in Cornella de Terri, near the northern city of Girona, his spokesman told The Associated Press. The Spanish government and its security forces are trying to prevent voting in the independence referendum, which is backed by Catalan regional authorities. Spanish officials had earlier said that force wouldn't be used, but that voting wouldn't be allowed.

Spain's Constitutional Court has suspended the vote. Regional separatist leaders pledged to hold it anyway, promising to declare independence if the "yes" side wins, and have called on the region's 5.3 million eligible voters to cast ballots.

Police had sealed off hundreds of voting centers in the hours before the vote to prevent their use. Others were filled with activists determined to hold their ground. At one school in Barcelona, Spanish riot police forcefully removed a few hundred would-be voters from a polling station. Daniel Riano was inside the building when the police pushed aside a large group gathered outside and busted in the Estela school's front door.

"We were waiting inside to vote when the National Police used force to enter, they used a mace to break in the glass door and they took everything," the 54-year-old Riano said. "One policeman put me in a headlock to drag me out, while I was holding my wife's hand! It was incredible. They didn't give any warning."

National Police and Civil Guard officers also showed up in other polling centers where Catalan officials were expected. Catalans braved rain to vote and defied police orders to abandon designated voting stations.

Joaquim Bosch, a 73-year-old retiree at Princep de Viana high school, where a crowd was growing Sunday morning, said he was uneasy about a possible police response. "I have come to vote to defend the rights of my country, which is Catalonia," Bosch said. "I vote because of the mistreatment of Catalonia by Spain for many years."

AP reporters saw ballot boxes wrapped in plastic bags being carried into some of the polling stations in Barcelona that were occupied overnight by parents and activists. The plastic ballot boxes, bearing the seal of the Catalan regional government, were placed on tables, prompting cheers from hopeful voters who had gathered in the schools before dawn.

In an effort to overcome the determined Spanish police efforts, Catalan officials announced that voters would be allowed to cast ballots in any location and could use ballots printed at home. Regional government spokesman Jordi Turull also said a group of "academics and professionals" had been invited to serve as election observers. The official electoral board appointed by the regional parliament was disbanded last week to avoid hefty fines by Spain's Constitutional Court.

"We are under conditions to be able to celebrate a self-determination referendum with guarantees," Turull said in a press conference. "Our goal is that all Catalans can vote." Courts and police have been cracking down for days to halt the vote, confiscating 10 million paper ballots and arresting key officials involved in the preparations. On Saturday, Civil Guard agents dismantled the technology to connect voting stations, count the votes and vote online, leading the Spanish government to declare that holding the referendum would be "impossible."

Associated Press writer Alex Oller contributed to this report from Barcelona, and Gregory Katz and Frank Griffiths contributed from London.

Catalans assemble in polling stations defying police orders

October 01, 2017

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Catalans were defying rain and police orders to leave designated polling stations Sunday ahead of a banned referendum on the region's secession that has challenged Spain's political and institutional order.

The country's Constitutional Court has suspended the vote and the Spanish central government says it's illegal. Regional separatist leaders have pledged to hold it anyway and have called on 5.3 million eligible voters to cast ballots.

Defiant crowds gathered before dawn Sunday in Barcelona and towns across Catalonia at schools and some of the other 2,315 facilities designated as polling stations. They were joining parents, children and activists who occupied the buildings over the weekend to make sure that polls open at 9 a.m. (0700GMT) on Sunday.

It was unclear how many of the polling stations would be able to open, if any at all. The Ministry of Interior didn't provide a number late on Saturday when it said that "most" of them had been sealed off and that only "some" remained occupied.

Police have received orders to avoid the use of force and only have been warning people to vacate the facilities. They are also supposed to confiscate ballots and ballot boxes. Activist Augsti Gil said there were no ballots or ballot boxes early Sunday at Barcelona's Joan Fuster high school, where hundreds have gathered ahead of the vote, but he expected them to arrive by the time polls opened.

Tension has been on the rise since the vote was called in early September, crystalizing years of defiance by separatists in the affluent region, which contributes a fifth of Spain's 1.1 trillion-euro economy ($1.32 trillion.)

Spain's 2008-2013 financial crisis and harsh austerity measures fueled frustration in Catalonia for setbacks in efforts to gain greater autonomy, with many Catalans feeling they could do better on their own.

Courts and police have been cracking down for days to halt the vote, confiscating 10 million paper ballots and arresting key officials involved in the preparations. On Saturday, Civil Guard agents dismantled the technology to connect voting stations, count the votes and vote online, leading the Spanish government to announce that holding the referendum would be "impossible."

Joaquim Bosch, a 73 year-old retiree at Princep de Viana high school, where a crowd of 20 people was growing Sunday morning, said he was uneasy about a possible police response to the crowds. "I have come to vote to defend the rights of my country, which is Catalonia," Bosch said. "I vote because of the mistreatment of Catalonia by Spain for many years."

On Saturday, Spain's foreign minister dismissed the planned vote as anti-democratic, saying it runs "counter to the goals and ideals" of the European Union. "What they are pushing is not democracy. It is a mockery of democracy, a travesty of democracy," Alfonso Dastis told The Associated Press in an interview.

Dozens of protests have been taking place in Catalonia and across Spain, some to condemn the crackdown on the vote and others supporting the nation's unity against the independence bid. No minimum turnout has been set for the validity of the vote by Catalan authorities. Regional government officials initially hoped for a turnout greater than the 2.3 million people who voted in a mock referendum in 2014 in which 80 percent favored independence but have recently signaled that they would consider the vote valid with a lower number given the challenges to hold it.

Separatist Catalan leaders have pledged to declare independence from Spain within 48 hours of Sunday's vote if the 'yes' side wins.

Associated Press writer Alex Oller contributed to this report.

Spain, Catalonia head for showdown over independence vote

September 30, 2017

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Montserrat Aguilera wasn't intending to vote for the Catalonia region to secede from the rest of Spain. But the 52-year-old laboratory worker changed her mind amid an unprecedented crackdown by Spain's government as it tries to prevent Sunday's independence referendum from going ahead.

Spain and its most powerful and prosperous region are headed for a showdown, with police trying to shut down polling stations to stop the referendum and activists, students and parents occupying schools designated voting places to keep them open.

Much remains unclear, including whether police will forcibly remove people who are still in the polling stations at a 6 a.m. Sunday deadline and how many of Catalonia's voters will be able to cast ballots amid the central government's crackdown.

Also unknown is what happens next if regional leaders declare any vote legitimate and Catalonia declares independence. The referendum was suspended under constitutional rules weeks ago so a court could consider its legality.

Turnout will be key, and if people like Aguilera are any indication, it could be high. She wanted a referendum to be held under constitutional rules so she could vote "no" and try to keep Spain and Catalonia united. Now, she wants Madrid to feel the pinch of the region's disgust.

"I don't agree with the way the vote has been convoked by the Catalan government. It should have been a legal one," Aguilera said. "But this is going to be a demonstration of democratic force to show (Prime Minister Mariano) Rajoy that we deserve respect and that he needs to listen to Catalonia."

Catalan authorities have pledged to make the voting possible even if police, acting on judges' orders, manage to close polling stations and seal off ballot boxes. Some 5.3 million people are eligible to vote in the region, one of 17 in Spain.

The latest surge for independence essentially started in 2010, when Spain's Constitutional Court struck down key parts of a groundbreaking charter that would have granted Catalonia greater autonomy and recognized it as a nation within Spain.

The rejection stung, and Spain's 2008-2013 financial crisis and the harsh austerity measures that followed generated more support for secession, with many Catalans feeling they could do better on their own. Catalonia contributes a fifth of the country's 1.1 trillion-euro economy ($1.32 trillion.)

While the vast majority of Catalans favor holding a referendum, they have long been almost evenly split over independence. If "yes" wins, Catalan authorities have promised to declare independence within 48 hours. No minimum participation rate has been set, but regional President Carles Puigdemont has acknowledged that a significant turnout will be needed to declare the results legitimate.

In a mock referendum in 2014, only about 35 percent of Catalans voted. Eighty percent favored independence. Officials say the Spanish crackdown could make the difference this time. Catalan Vice President Oriol Junqueras said six out of 10 Catalans were expected to vote, according to the regional government's polling.

Nou Barris, where Aguilera lives, showed the least support among Barcelona's neighborhoods for separatist parties in regional elections two years ago. In balconies and windows, there are few of the pro-independence flags ubiquitous in other central and wealthier areas of Barcelona.

Still, Aguilera says many in her neighborhood, including her son, have decided to show for Sunday's disputed vote. "Vote yes, vote no, vote null or an empty ballot, but vote to be free and be heard," she said. "These two governments need to sit down and talk, and this is how we'll make them understand that."

The Spanish government says the vote, which has been ordered suspended by the Constitutional Court, will not take place. It has called in thousands of police reinforcements that are being housed in ferries in Barcelona's port, raising tensions in one of Europe's most popular tourist destinations.

The government has also initiated a barrage of legal challenges, including placing 700 pro-independence mayors under investigation and briefly arresting a dozen or so government officials. "These are not easy days, for sure, but we feel strong," Puigdemont said recently. "While Spain acts like a regime where the authority of power grows inversely to its moral strength, we feel increasingly supported by the Catalan people's greatest asset: its people."

But it's hard to see how a vote will take place when millions of ballot papers were seized and police have been ordered to make sure no polling center stays open. There is no electoral board to monitor the election, but Catalan authorities say votes will be counted.

"Voting is not guaranteed," Andrew Dowling, a Catalonia specialist at Cardiff University in Wales, said. "We don't know what will happen but there won't be a referendum in any meaningful sense." There has also been little or no campaigning by those opposed to independence.

"The 'no' side don't feel they have to turn out on Sunday because they don't think independence is going to happen," Dowling said. No country or international body has expressed an appetite for Catalan independence either. The European Union backs Spain and says an independent Catalonia would have to reapply for EU membership, something Spain could block.

"On a legal level, Madrid is right," European Parliament President Antonio Tajani said Friday. "I think it's important to talk on a political level after Monday and to respect laws — Catalan laws and Spanish laws."

U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Spain should stay united, branding the secession move as "foolish." Rajoy, the prime minister, has warned Catalonia to drop the referendum bid, which he called a "totalitarian act."

Talks between the two sides have been virtually nonexistent and both accuse each other of acting illegally and undemocratically. The issue has so far had almost no economic fallout, although the S&P credit rating agency warned that growth prospects may weaken if tensions in Catalonia escalate.

"If you have got financial interests in Madrid or internationally you do not think that Catalan independence is imminent and I think that feeling is true for lots of Spanish people and lots of Catalans," Dowling said.

Giles contributed from Madrid.

Police ultimatum in Catalonia: Leave schools before dawn

September 30, 2017

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Police in Catalonia issued an ultimatum Saturday: the separatists, parents and children who are occupying schools to use them as polling stations for a disputed referendum on the region's independence from Spain must leave by dawn.

The police deadline of 6 a.m. Sunday is designed to prevent the vote from taking place, since the polls are supposed to open three hours later. Spain's Constitutional Court suspended the independence vote more than three weeks ago and the national government calls it illegal. Police have been ordered to stop ballots from being cast on Sunday and have been cracking down for days, confiscating ballots and posters.

Catalonia's defiant regional government is pressing ahead despite the ban and the police crackdown, urging the region's 5.3 million registered voters to make their voices heard. Spain's foreign minister said Saturday the Catalan government's plan is anti-democratic and runs "counter to the goals and ideals the European Union" is trying to advance.

"What they are pushing is not democracy. It is a mockery of democracy, a travesty of democracy," Minister Alfonso Dastis told The Associated Press. Emotions are running high as the vote nears. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's conservative government says any vote on Catalan secession would have to be held across all of Spain, not just in Catalonia. The European Union has said that Catalonia would be forced out of the bloc and have to reapply to join if it leaves Spain, an EU member.

Parents supporting the referendum are camping out over the weekend at schools that are among the 2,315 designated voting facilities to keep police from them shutting down. A top Spanish security official in Catalonia says police have already sealed off more than half of the 2,315 polling stations and disabled software that was to have been used in the referendum.

Enric Millo, the highest-ranking Spanish official in the northeastern region, said parents and students were found to be occupying 163 schools when police were sealing off facilities on Saturday. The regional police force has been ordered not to use force, but to vacate the schools three hours before the scheduled opening of polls at 9 a.m.

Millo says anyone remaining in schools after 6 a.m. will need to be removed in line with a judge's orders, but predicts there won't be significant problems. "I trust in the common sense of Catalans and that people will operate with prudence," he said.

Quim Roy, a father of two daughters, said police told the few dozen parents and children at the Congres-Indians primary school in Barcelona on Saturday morning about the deadline and warned them not to display any pro-independence material.

"The only thing that is clear to me is that I won't use violence," Roy said. "If they tell me I can't be in a public school to exercise my democratic rights, they will have to take me out of here. I won't resist, but they will have to carry me out."

Organizers have set up a range of activities in the schools to keep spirits high as the historic confrontation with Spain's central government unfolds, including yoga sessions, games, film screenings and picnics. But Roy said many parents have decided to send their children home on Saturday night out of concerns for their safety.

"We decided in a meeting that we would send the kids home. Calling them human shields is a huge lie, but I made my decision because there is fear. Who knows what will happen if the Guardia Civil comes?" Roy said, referring to the Spanish national police force, which has been ordered to stop the vote.

He hopes at least a few dozen parents will hold a vigil to keep the school occupied and make it much more difficult for the authorities to shut down. How Catalonia's 17,000 regional officers respond to their orders — and whether they can clear all the polling places — could be key to the success or failure of the referendum.

It is not clear whether the Catalan government can distribute enough ballot boxes and ballots to the polling stations to carry out a credible test of regional sentiment. Police have already confiscated 10 million paper ballots in the last few days.

Roy said there were no ballot boxes or ballots yet at the Congres-Indians primary school but he was not bothered by that. "They will appear," he said with a shrug. In Madrid, thousands of people rallied Saturday in a central plaza to protest the Catalan independence vote, angry that it could divide Spain. Some shouted "Long live Spain!" and "Puigdemont to jail!"

Catalan regional President Carles Puigdemont, who openly favors breaking away from Spain, is among those promoting the independence vote.

Giles reported from Madrid. Aritz Parra contributed from Barcelona.

Leaders of Romania, Croatia want a one-speed Europe

October 02, 2017

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — The presidents of Romania and Croatia have called for an end to the differences between older and newer European Union members. Some newer EU members are frustrated they do not enjoy the same benefits as older EU members. Many East European members do not use the euro.

Klaus Iohannis said he and Croatian President Kolinda Gabar-Kitarovic agreed Monday on "an elimination of differences between different states (which is) very important," Iohannis said. Grabar-Kitarovic said she opposed "a two-speed Europe," after talks with Iohannis. She said Romania and neighbor Bulgaria, both EU members, deserve to be members of the visa-free Schengen travel zone.

She also said Romania and Bulgaria, members since 2007, should no longer be subjected to a process that monitors whether they implement reforms.

Greece backs extradition of Russian to US over bitcoin fraud

October 04, 2017

THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — A Greek court ruled Wednesday to extradite Russian cybercrime suspect Alexander Vinnik to the United States, where he is wanted in connection with a $4 billion bitcoin fraud case.

The three-member panel of judges backed the U.S. extradition request for the 37-year-old, who was arrested while on vacation in northern Greece on July 25. Soon after the decision, Vinnik's lawyers appealed to the Supreme Court on behalf of their client.

Russia is also seeking Vinnik's extradition on separate fraud charges, but no date has yet been set for that hearing. While fighting his extradition to the U.S., Vinnik's lawyers said he would not contest the Russian request.

"We have not seen the formal decision and we'll wait for it to come out before making comment," Vinnik's lawyer Alexandros Lykourezos said. "We have taken immediate action and appealed the ruling and the case will be examined by the criminal division of the Supreme Court."

U.S. authorities accuse Vinnik of running digital currency exchange BTC-e and of involvement in laundering money from criminal proceeds, charges he denies. Speaking during Wednesday's hearing, Vinnik repeated that he had nothing to do with the digital platform he is accused of running to commit the bitcoin fraud. He said he was merely a technician and the platform was one of his clients.

"I have nothing to do with what I am accused of," he told the judges. Vinnik said electronic equipment confiscated during his arrest was not related to his job, and that the laptop seized by police contained only cartoons for his children.

Elena Becatoros in Athens contributed.

Top EU officials rally behind Spanish PM over Catalan poll

October 04, 2017

BRUSSELS (AP) — Senior European Union officials and lawmakers rallied Wednesday behind embattled Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, condemning the authorities in Catalonia for holding an illegal referendum on independence that has plunged Spain into political crisis.

European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans led a chorus of criticism of Sunday's violence-marred vote in the northern Spanish region. He made no mention of the almost 900 people hurt in the police action to stop the poll.

Wary of interfering in Spain's domestic affairs, the EU representatives called for talks between the government in Madrid and Catalan authorities, but shied away from suggesting that the bloc could play a peacemaking role, despite appeals from Catalonia for European mediation.

"There is a general consensus that the regional government of Catalonia has chosen to ignore the law," Timmermans told the lawmakers at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. "Respect for the rule of law is not optional, it is fundamental," he said. "You cannot ignore the law."

Not all of the lawmakers backed the senior officials' position, however. A Catalan flag was removed from the plenary at the demand of a Spanish lawmaker, while some parliamentarians displayed signs supporting the referendum or calling for Rajoy to resign.

Urging the pro-European region's representatives and Rajoy's government to come to the negotiating table, Timmermans said: "All lines of communication must stay open. It's time to talk, to find a way out of the impasse."

The head of the biggest political group in the parliament, Manfred Weber — a Rajoy ally — said he was "very sorry for all those who were hurt,"Catalan citizens and police alike, but warned that demonstrations cannot replace democratic processes.

He saw no European mediation role, saying "the EU has neither the will nor the right to intervene in a true liberal democracy such as Spain." Weber also had another warning for pro-European Catalonia: "Please keep in mind; who leaves Spain, leaves the European Union."

Greens group leader Ska Keller was one of the few to condemn the police crackdown against what was, in the main, passive resistance. "This was massive police violence against people and that was beyond any proportionality. Violence so disproportionate cannot be justified. No buts and no excuses, whatever you think about the referendum," she said.

She said that Rajoy's strategy of using justice and police means to thwart the poll rather than dialogue has failed. Keller also accused the EU Commission of sitting on the fence and failing in its duty as the enforcer of EU laws.

Raf Casert in Brussels contributed.

Japanese roots of Nobel winner Kazuo Ishiguro celebrated

October 06, 2017

TOKYO (AP) — Nobel literature laureate Kazuo Ishiguro left Japan at the age of 5, but some in the country of his birthplace are celebrating his roots. Ishiguro's former kindergarten teacher in Nagasaki said it's like a dream come true. Teruko Tanaka recalled to Japan's Kyodo News service that he was a quiet boy who liked to read books.

Ishiguro was born in Nagasaki but raised and educated in England. He was awarded the Nobel Prize on Thursday. Nagasaki Mayor Tomihisa Taue said he is proud that the city has a Nobel Prize winner who has kept Nagasaki close to his heart. Ishiguro's first novel describes the city soon after the U.S. atomic bomb attack in 1945.

UN ending 13-year military peacekeeping mission in Haiti

October 06, 2017

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — A U.N. peacekeeping mission in Haiti that has helped maintain order through 13 years of political turmoil and catastrophe is coming to an end as the last of the blue-helmeted soldiers from around the world leave despite concerns that the police and justice system are still not adequate to ensure security in the country.

The U.N. lowered its flag at its headquarters in Port-au-Prince during a ceremony Thursday that was attended by President Jovenel Moise, who thanked the organization for helping to provide stability. After a gradual winding down, there are now about 100 international soldiers in the country and they will leave within days. The mission will officially end on Oct. 15.

Immediately afterward, the U.N. will start a new mission made up of about 1,300 international civilian police officers, along with 350 civilians who will help the country reform a deeply troubled justice system. Various agencies and programs of the international body, such as the Food and Agricultural Organization, will also still be working in the country.

"It will be a much smaller peacekeeping mission," said Sandra Honore, a diplomat from Trinidad and Tobago who has served since July 2013 as the head of the U.N. mission in Haiti known as MINUSTAH, its French acronym. "The United Nations is not leaving."

MINUSTAH began operations in Haiti in 2004, when a violent rebellion swept the country and forced then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide out of power and into exile. Its goals included restoring security and rebuilding the shattered political institutions. In April, the Security Council deemed the country sufficiently stable and voted to wind down the international military presence, which then consisted of about 4,700 troops.

Many Haitians have viewed the multinational peacekeepers as an affront to national sovereignty. U.N. troops are believed to have inadvertently introduced the deadly cholera bacteria to the country and have also been accused of causing civilian casualties in fierce battles with gangs in Port-au-Prince and of sexually abusing minors.

But the mission, with additional help from the U.S. and other nations, is also credited with stabilizing the country, particularly after the January 2010 earthquake, and building up the national police force.

"The job may not be complete but they have essentially done much of what they were originally designed to do in terms of preventing any kind of armed takeover of the state, in terms of increasing the safety of civilians," said Mark Schneider, a senior adviser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "It takes work to maintain that and Haiti needs to maintain that."

MINUSTAH, Schneider said, has been key in helping Haiti develop a credible civilian national police from "almost zero" to its current level of about 15,000 officers, which most experts believe is still too small for a country of nearly 11 million. The police force was intended to replace the army, which was disbanded by Aristide in 1995 because of its repeated role in a series of coups and that the Haitian government is now seeking to reconstitute over international objections.

"Haiti needs an atmosphere of peace so we can take responsibility for ourselves," said Haitian Sen. Jacques Suaveur Jean. "We don't need foreign soldiers." The new U.N. mission will consist of seven police units that can respond to major incidents, in addition to officers deployed throughout the country to advise and assist their Haitian counterparts. Civilians will also be working with the government to improve the country's justice system, which the State Department said in this year's annual human rights report has serious flaws, including severe prison overcrowding, prolonged pretrial detention and an inefficient judiciary.

Honore, in an interview ahead of Thursday's ceremony, cited the training and hiring of police officers as one of the U.N. successes. MINUSTAH had already been scaling back before the Security Council voted to end the mission. In the aftermath of the earthquake, which killed 96 U.N. personnel, including former head of mission Hedi Annabi, the number of troops reached more than 10,000. But when Honore arrived there were about 6,200 soldiers from around 20 countries, a figure that dropped again by nearly a third within two years.

The cholera outbreak, which started in October 2010 after peacekeepers from Nepal contaminated the country's largest river with waste from their base, killed an estimated 9,500 people and irrevocably damaged the reputation of the organization in Haiti. Many critics felt the U.N. did not adequately respond to the outbreak, something the organization sought to later remedy.

"It was a fundamental error because it undermined the image not just of MINUSTAH, but of the international community," Schneider said.

Associated Press writer Ben Fox in Miami contributed to this report.

Sri Lankan monk among 7 jailed for attack on Rohingya

October 02, 2017

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lankan authorities have arrested seven people, including at least one Buddhist monk, suspected of storming a United Nations safe house for Rohingya Muslim refugees last week.

Monk Akmeenmana Dayaratana and another suspect were arrested Monday and ordered to remain behind bars until at least Oct. 9, said police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara. He said the other five suspects were arrested and remanded over the weekend.

They are accused of being among dozens of protesters from Sri Lanka's majority Buddhist community, including monks, who stormed a safe house on the outskirts of Colombo where 31 Rohingya Muslims who fled Myanmar, including 17 children, had been living since arriving in the country in April. The monks claimed the refugees were terrorists and demanded they be returned to Myanmar, prompting police to move the refugees to another location.

Video posted on Facebook by a nationalist group, the Sinhala National Movement, shows protesters calling Rohingya "terrorists who killed Buddhists in Myanmar" and saying that they can't live in Sri Lanka.

The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said in a news release that it was alarmed by the attack. Sri Lankan government leaders also condemned it, describing it as a "shameful act," and calling for strong action against the perpetrators.

Sri Lanka Buddhists make up 70 percent of the island's 20 million people, while Muslims account for 10 percent. More than half-a-million Rohingya have fled from the region to Bangladesh in just over a month, making it the largest refugee crisis to hit Asia in decades. The latest violence began when a Rohingya insurgent group launched deadly attacks on security posts Aug. 25, prompting Myanmar's military to launch "clearance operations."

Rohingya have long faced persecution and discrimination in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, where the government denies them citizenship and considers them illegal immigrants. Extremist Buddhist monks in Sri Lanka have ties with their counterparts in Myanmar and monks in both countries have been accused of leading attacks on minority Muslims.

The launch of Sputnik 60 years ago opened space era

October 04, 2017

MOSCOW (AP) — The launch of Sputnik 60 years ago opened the space era and became a major triumph for the Soviet Union, showcasing its military might and technological prowess. It also stunned the rest of the world.

Details of the development and the launch of the first artificial satellite were hidden behind the veil of secrecy that surrounded the Soviet space program and only became known decades later. A look at some little-known facts behind the Oct. 4, 1957, launch of the unmanned spacecraft:

A BYPRODUCT OF THE SOVIET MISSILE PROGRAM

Amid a tense Cold War arms race with the United States, the Soviet Union focused its efforts on building the world's first intercontinental ballistic missile capable of delivering a hydrogen warhead to the U.S. The R-7 missile was built by a team led by Sergei Korolyov, and tests of the rocket began in 1957.

Korolyov, a visionary scientist and a shrewd manager at the same time, pressed the reluctant military brass to use one of the first R-7s to put a satellite in orbit. He warned Soviet leaders that the U.S. was also developing a satellite and won the Kremlin's permission for the launch.

SIMPLE DESIGN

While there already was a project for a full-fledged scientific satellite, Korolyov ordered his team of engineers to design a primitive orbiter to save time and beat the U.S. into space. The craft, which was built in only a few months, was named PS-1, for "Prosteishiy Sputnik" — the "Simplest Satellite."

The satellite, weighing less than 84 kilograms (about 184 pounds) and slightly larger than a basketball, was a pressurized sphere of polished aluminum alloy with two radio transmitters and four antennas.

An earlier satellite project envisaged a cone-shape vehicle, but Korolyov opted for the sphere. "The Earth is a sphere, and its first satellite also must have a spherical shape," he was quoted as saying.

THE START OF SPACE AGE

While the rest of the world was stunned by the Soviet accomplishment, the Kremlin's leadership seemed to be slow to grasp the scope of the event. The first official Soviet report of Sputnik's launch was brief and buried deep inside the pages of Pravda, the Communist Party's daily newspaper. Only two days after the launch did it come out with a banner headline and quotes of the foreign accolades.

LIGHT AND SOUND IN THE SKY

Sputnik contained a radio transmitter, broadcasting a distinctive "beep-beep-beep" sound. Pravda published a description of Sputnik's orbit to help people watch it pass. However, it didn't mention that the light seen moving across the night sky was in fact the spent booster rocket's second stage, which was in roughly same orbit as the satellite. The tiny orbiter itself was invisible to the naked eye.

Sputnik orbited the Earth for three months before burning up in the atmosphere.

LEADING SPACE RACE

Thrilled by the global furor caused by Sputnik's launch, the Kremlin immediately ordered Korolyov to launch a new satellite to mark the Nov. 7 anniversary of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. His team succeeded in building a spacecraft in less than a month, and on Nov. 3 launched Sputnik 2, which weighed about 508 kilograms (1,120 pounds). It carried the world's first passenger, a dog named Laika. While the dog died of the heat soon after the launch, the flight proved that a living being could survive in space.

On April 12, 1961, the Soviet Union made another giant leap ahead of the United States when Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space. The Soviet lead in space prompted the U.S. to pour money into research and technology. In 1969, the U.S. won the race to land the first man on the moon, while the Soviet program collapsed in a series of booster rocket explosions.

UNKNOWN HERO

Amid the shroud of secrecy around the Soviet rocket and space program, Korolyov was never mentioned in any contemporary accounts of the launch. His key role was known only to a small circle of senior Soviet officials and space engineers.

Korolyov was only allowed to publish the non-secret parts of his research under the pseudonym "Professor K. Sergeyev," while Leonid Sedov, a member of the Soviet Academy of Sciences with no connection to space program, was erroneously praised in the West as the Father of Sputnik.

Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev rejected the Nobel committee's offer to nominate Sputnik's designer for a prize, insisting it was the achievement of "the entire Soviet people." Korolyov's daughter, Natalia, recalled later that her father sometimes felt bitter about the secrecy. "We are like miners — we work underground," she quoted him saying. "No one sees or hears us."

Russia starts delivery of MiG-29 fighter jets to Serbia

October 02, 2017

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Russia on Monday started delivering six MiG-29 fighter jets to Serbia, part of Moscow's promised military hardware that could worsen tensions in the war-weary Balkans. Two of the warplanes were transported, disassembled, on a Russian cargo plane that landed at a military airport near Belgrade on Monday afternoon. All six are to arrive by Oct. 20, when Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu is expected in the Serbian capital.

Moscow is handing over the MiGs for free, but it's estimated the overhaul of the secondhand aircraft will cost Serbia some 200 million euros ($235 million.) Russia has also promised the delivery of 30 battle tanks and 30 armored vehicles to Serbia, which was at war with its neighbors Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo in the 1990s during the bloody breakup of the former Yugoslavia.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said Monday that in addition to the jets, the country will boost its anti-aircraft defense. It has been negotiating the purchase of the Russian-made S-300 systems. "We will continue to protect our freedom and independence," Vucic said.

Serbia has been on the path to join the European Union, but under political and propaganda pressure from Moscow it has steadily slid toward the Kremlin and its goal of keeping Balkan countries out of NATO and other Western bodies.

Serbia is a member of the Western military alliance's Partnership for Peace program. A NATO official, speaking on the customary condition of anonymity, said "the defense equipment which NATO's partners procure is a sovereign choice for those countries. There are no restrictions imposed by NATO."

Serbia's archrival, NATO-member Croatia, is shopping for a new fighter to replace the nation's aging MiG-21s. The two leading contenders for the planned contract reportedly include Israeli version of American Lockheed Martin's F-16 and Swedish Saab's JAS-39 Gripen.

AP Writer Lorne Cook contributed from Brussels.

Court jails Russian opposition leader Navalny for 20 days

October 02, 2017

MOSCOW (AP) — A Moscow court on Monday sent Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny to jail for 20 days for calling for an unsanctioned protest, which would keep him away from a major rally this weekend.

Police detained Navalny on Friday, preventing him from traveling to a rally in a major Russian city that had given its official permission to hold the gathering. Charges brought against the Kremlin's top rival relate to the upcoming rally in St. Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city and President Vladimir Putin's hometown, which has not been sanctioned.

After he announced his presidential bid last year, Navalny, arguably Russia's most popular opposition politician, inspired a grassroots campaign in Russian regions to support his nomination. "20 days in jail. Old man Putin got so scared of our rallies in the regions and decided to make himself a little present for himself for his birthday," Navalny tweeted shortly after the ruling Monday evening.

The rally in St. Petersburg was scheduled for Saturday, which is also Putin's birthday. Navalny's campaign late Monday called for rallies to protest his arrest in other Russian cities this Saturday. A Russian law on public gatherings, which was hastily adopted following massive anti-government rallies in 2011-2012, carries 30 days in jail for repeated violations.

In another Moscow courthouse, a judge is expected to hand down a ruling later Monday in the case of Navalny's campaign chief, Leonid Volkov, who faces similar charges. The Kremlin has dismissed Navalny, who has faced repeated jailings and criminal cases, as an urbanite out of touch with people living in Russia's 11 time zones where Putin draws his support from.

Yet that began to change earlier this year when Navalny, a 41-year-old lawyer, opened campaign offices in 80 cities and towns. Most of those places had not seen a diverse political life for decades, and Navalny attracted thousands of supporters.