The Spanish government has said that the head of the Catalonia region has failed to clarify whether he declared independence last week. In a letter to Madrid on Monday, Carles Puigdemont instead called for negotiation over the next two months.   Spain’s Deputy PM Soraya Saenz de Santamaria said Mr Puigdemont now has until Thursday to clarify his position. The …

At least 31 people have died in a series of wildfires in Portugal, the country’s civil protection service says. A spokeswoman for the agency told reporters that firefighters were still tackling 145 separate fires – dozens of which were still considered serious. Across the border in Spain’s Galicia region, at least three people are dead.   More than 50 people …

BBC – Police hunting the chief suspect in last Thursday’s Barcelona van attack have shot dead a man to the west of the city who appeared to be wearing an explosive belt, Spanish media say. The shooting is said to have happened on a road in the Subirats area. Earlier, police confirmed they were hunting for Younes Abouyaaqoub, 22, suspected …

BBC – A group of jihadists carried out a series of attacks in and around the Spanish city of Barcelona, killing 15 people. The campaign of violence saw a van mowing down tourists and residents in Barcelona’s famous Las Ramblas boulevard, and a car being driven into pedestrians in the popular seaside resort of Cambrils.   What happened? It was …