Spanish Supreme Court places rebellion charges against more Catalan leaders

MADRID, Dec. 22 (Xinhua) -- A judge of the Spanish Supreme Court on Friday charged several Catalan political leaders with rebellion for their role in making the region an independent state.

Those charged included Marta Rovira, general secretary of separatist party Esquerra Republicana (ERC), former Catalan leader Artur Mas, coordinator of the PDeCAT party Marta Pascal, and former spokesperson of the CUP party Anna Gabriel, among others, the Spanish media quoted Judge Pablo Llarena as saying.

The charges came in the wake of a report published by the Civil Guard calling Rovira and Mas as people who "designed, orientated, directed and controlled their plans for the creation of an independent (Catalan) state and moved human resources for it to happen."

ERC leader Oriol Junqueras is currently imprisoned faced with charges of rebellion, sedition and the misuse of public funds, while former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont is in exile in Belgium, although both were elected as the leaders of their respective parties in Thursday's regional elections.

Despite center-right party Ciudadanos emerging as the top winner with a 37 seat gain, the separatist bloc maintains their majority in the regional assembly. Enditem