Wanted Catalan separatist Puigdemont reappears in Spain to rally supporters then vanishes again

FILE PHOTO: Exiled Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont reacts on the day of Catalonia's regional elections, in the French town of Argeles-sur-Mer, France, May 12, 2024. REUTERS/Bruna Casas/File Photo

MADRID (Reuters) -Former Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont defied an arrest warrant to appear at a rally in the Spanish city of Barcelona on Thursday after seven years of self-imposed exile, and then vanished before police could arrest him.

Amid a heavy police presence, Puigdemont spoke to a crowd of thousands of followers in the Catalan capital from a platform near the Catalan parliament before disappearing backstage.