Free Republic

Nationhood and autonomy are issues that transcend north-east Spain, with others wanting to redraw the map of Europe. (A list of regions in Europe that are pining for some level of independence, and a presentation of their grievances and prospects) (This is one of the major reason why most national governments of Europe back Spain in its fight with Catalonia - they don't want to be put in the same situation. If Catalonia wins, it will only embolden all these independence movements.)

Legal and scientific ethics seem to have become irrelevant, as anti-chemical agitators, regulators and trial lawyers team up on numerous lawsuits against Monsanto. They’re seeking tens of billions of dollars in jackpot justice, by claiming a chemical in the company’s popular weed killer RoundUp causes cancer.A key basis for the legal actions is a March 2015 International Agency for Research on Cancer ruling that glyphosate is a “probable human carcinogen.” A previously little known agency in the World Health Organization (WHO), IARC has gained infamy in recent years – as critics slammed it for manipulating data and altering or deleting...

EXCLUSIVE: Nigel Farage has slammed the European Union's response to the crisis in Catalonia, saying it is Jean-Claude Juncker's worst nightmare. Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk, the former UKIP leader said: "This is Mr. Juncker's worst nightmare. The European Union backed Spanish brutality and turned the Catalans against the EU. This makes Brexit look like a Sunday afternoon picnic." Mr. Farage hit out after the President of the European Council Donald Tusk once again refused to help the Catalan people in their pursuit of following self-determination and breakaway control from Madrid.......

The choice of Barcelona as a target for terrorists came as little surprise to security experts in Spain and elsewhere in Europe because of Catalonia’s links to jihadists and Salafism, a radical form of Islam. Catalonia has been the main hub of jihadist recruitment in Spain for more than a decade and radical Islamists consider it to be occupied land that should be part of a future Islamic caliphate. The region is home to approximately 510,000 Muslims, more than a quarter of the total number in Spain, according to a demographic study by the Union of Islamic Communities of Spain....

The Spanish government has stripped Catalonia of its autonomy and taken charge of its government. The measures early on Saturday came after the Catalan parliament voted to declare independence on Friday. An official state bulletin dismissed Catalan leaders and handed control of Catalonia to Spain's Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria. Earlier, Spain's interior ministry took charge of Catalonia's police after firing senior Catalan police officials........

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is dissolving the Catalan parliament and calling snap local elections after MP's there voted to declare independence. Mr. Rajoy said the unprecedented imposition of direct rule on Catalonia was essential to 'recover normality'. He is also firing Catalan leader Carlos Puigdemont and his cabinet. The crisis began when Catalan leaders held an independence referendum, defying a ruling by the Constitutional Court which had declared it illegal..... Mr. Rajoy also announced the sacking of the Catalan police chief. A motion declaring independence was approved with 70 in favor, 10 against, and two abstentions in the 135-seat...

The Catalan regional parliament has voted to declare independence from Spain, just as the Spanish government appears set to impose direct rule. The move was backed 70-10 in a ballot boycotted by opposition MPs. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy earlier told senators direct rule was needed to return "law, democracy and stability" to Catalonia. The crisis began when Catalans backed independence in a disputed vote earlier this month. What powers does Catalonia have?The case for and against independenceReality Check: Police violence in Catalonia The Catalan government said that of the 43% of potential voters who took part in the...

(Nigel Farage 5:15) "The European Union who were studiously quiet after all the police brutality a few weeks ago...." (Journalist James Babcock 5:28) ..."the main leaders of the European Union with exceptions such as Belgium have rallied around the Spanish government. We saw that in the summit last weekend. We heard Mr. Macron, we heard Merkel and the Commission President all saying basically that they support Spain, they support the Spanish constitution, the constitutional order in Spain." (Nigel Farage) ...That was Theresa May's position, too, wasn't it? (James Babcock) Yes....They're treating this as an internal matter.... (Nigel Farage 6:15) ...Well,...

A 52-year-old woman in Denmark has been sentenced to three months conditional sentence after having sex with a 17-year-old boy in the asylum-Residence where she worked, NSD report.

Never before has such political upheaval taken place on the European continent without actual warfare taking place. Insurgent parties of all stripes are gaining seats and winning elections, and what’s the one overarching factor? Anti-Globalization. Whether their own particular form of fight back against Globalization comes as anti-mass immigration or anti-EU fervor, they are taking a stand against the globalist machinations that have sought to undermine nation state democracy. In the Czech Republic, the national election has just been won by ANO (Yes) Party under the helm of Andrej Babis who is often described as the “Czech Trump.” With 30%...

A senior government adviser has told the BBC that the authorities are not prosecuting many Islamic State volunteers, believing they should be reintegrated rather than punished. Max Hill QC, who acts as the government’s Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, told Radio 4 that “we do have a significant number [of Islamic State volunteers] already back in this country who have previously gone to Iraq and Syria” — currently estimated at something over 400. “That means that the authorities have looked at them, and looked at them hard, and decided that they do not justify prosecution, and really we should be...

MADRID/BARCELONA (Reuters) - Catalonia’s leaders said on Saturday they would not accept direct rule imposed on the region by the Spanish government, as a political crisis that has rattled the economy and raised fears of prolonged unrest showed no signs of easing. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy announced earlier on Saturday he would invoke special constitutional powers to fire the regional government and force a new election to counter the region’s move towards independence. It is the first time since Spain’s return to democracy that the central government has used its powers to seize control of a regional administration.

For months now, Western counterterrorism experts have sounded the alarm: as ISIS loses ground, foreign fighters from America and Europe may try returning home. When they do, the experts cautioned, they will carry the terror threat with them, ready and willing to strike. Law enforcement needs to be prepared. Now, with the fall of the Iraqi city of Harija, the Islamic State's last major stronghold, and the impending collapse of its Syrian capital, Raqqa, the time has finally come. But is law enforcement prepared? Not really. An estimated 5,000 Europeans joined ISIS and other terrorist groups since fighting first broke...

Police are hunting a knifeman following a stabbing spree in Munich's central square, next to an underground station...... Munich police said that at least four people have been lightly injured during stabbing......

Spain is to start suspending Catalan autonomy on Saturday.... The PM's office said ministers would meet to activate Article 155 of the constitution..... Catalonia's leader said earlier the region's parliament would vote on independence, backed in a disputed referendum on October 1st, if Spain "continues repression". Some fear the moves could spark unrest......

If you’ve ever seen Casablanca, you won’t have forgotten the scene in Rick’s Cafe where the German officers who are singing “Die Wacht am Rhein” are drowned out by the French patrons who burst into a rousing rendition of the “Marseillaise.”Something similar happened last week at the National Opera in Cluj Napoca, Romania. A “multicultural” opera that included a Muslim muezzin chanting the call to prayer was interrupted by members of the audience singing the national anthem. The Romanian national anthem is not quite as rousing as “La Marseillaise” (at least, not to the non-Romanian ear), and the singers were...

European conservative scholars and intellectuals have released a manifesto aimed at restoring Europe to its “true genius” and actively recovering “what is best in our tradition.” The manifesto, called the Paris Statement, details how “technocratic tyranny” and “false freedom” prevails in Europe, threatening its very existence as well as the Christian roots that undergird it.  The statement, released October 7, lists concerns about the growing secularization of Europe, Muslim immigration, and the rise of a “false Europe.” It outlines ways Europe can return to respecting the sovereignty of its nations, overcome “isolation and aimlessness,” and restore “true liberalism.” “The true...

VIENNA — At age 31, Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz is poised to become the first millennial to lead a European country following his party’s victory in a national election Sunday. While no party won a majority, the telegenic Kurz is most likely to be sworn in as Austria’s next chancellor — and Europe’s youngest leader — after the tough coalition government negotiations that lie ahead. Near-final results from Sunday’s balloting put his People’s Party comfortably in first place, with 31.4 percent of the vote. The right-wing Freedom Party came in second with 27.4 percent. The center-left Social Democratic Party...

Vienna (AFP) - Austria's political "whizz-kid" Sebastian Kurz was on course Sunday to become Europe's youngest leader, potentially in coalition with the far-right, after his conservative party looked to have triumphed in elections. Kurz's People's Party (OeVP) won 30.5 percent of the vote, followed by Chancellor Christian Kern's Social Democrats (SPOe) on 27.1 percent and the far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) on 25.9 percent, projections on public TV showed. Kurz, 31, nicknamed "wunderwuzzi", ("whizzkid") took over the OeVP in May and managed to attract supporters in droves by depicting himself as a breath of fresh air, talking tough on immigration and...

Hurricane Ophelia is the latest weather system to whip up winds and rain in the Atlantic. But the storm is heading east toward the northwest coast of Spain and then up to Ireland instead of crossing the Atlantic toward the hurricane-ravaged Caribbean. Ophelia officially gained hurricane status on Wednesday evening, according to the National Hurricane Center. As of Thursday morning, Ophelia was moving northeast at about 3 mph and was expected to continue on that path for the next day or so. The storm has picked up strength, with sustained winds of 90 mph and higher gusts. Some of...