Catalan separatist Puigdemont back in limelight with impending arrest

FILE PHOTO: Together for Catalonia (Junts per Catalunya) regional Candidate Carles Puigdemont attends an interview in Perpignan, France, April 15, 2024. REUTERS/ Albert Gea/File Photo

BARCELONA/MADRID (Reuters) - Seven years after leading Catalonia's failed bid to secede from Spain, Carles Puigdemont is set to return from self-imposed exile despite facing a likely arrest that could trigger yet another crisis between the region and Madrid.

Although the Spanish parliament passed a contentious amnesty bill in May pardoning those involved in the 2017 secession attempt, the Supreme Court has upheld warrants for the arrest of Puigdemont and two others charged with embezzlement.