A Spanish judge has issued an international arrest warrant for Catalonia’s president Carles Puigdemont and four other Catalan leaders as they were in Belgium on Friday.

The move, comes after the judge took nine other members of the regional government into custody after the Spanish central government removed them from their posts.

The leader of Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government on Monday is to end his term of office on November 1 after his request not to renew his term was approved by parliament.

The decision comes just weeks after a referendum on independence, which was led by President Masoud Barzani.

The Catalan government voted on Friday to declare independence from Spain, following a referendum earlier this month. 

The decision came as over 2000 pro-indpendence supporters gathered outside the regional parliament in Barcelona. 

“Catalonia is and will be a land of freedom. In times of difficulty and in times of celebration. Now more than ever”, the Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont tweeted. 

Kurdish Peshmerga forces continued to fight against Iraqi security forces into Thursday, reports Rudaw news.

Iraqi forces alongside Shiite paramilitary forces attached the Kurdish Peshmerga on several fronts. Commenting on the developments during the day the Kurdish Region Security Council  called on the international communtiy to denoucne Iraq's actions, stating,

The Kurdistan Regional Government offered to ‘freeze’ the independence referendum results in favour of a ceasefire and talks with Baghdad reports BBC News.

The Kurdistan Regional Government condemned the Iraqi Security force’s offensive on Kurdish regions, stating

The United States is discussing accountability measures to hold Myanmar’s military leadership responsible for the ongoing rights violations against the Rohingya community and will consider targeted sanctions.

In a statement released Wednesday, the state department said,

Rome said it was ready to hold discussion with the regions of Lombardy and Veneto, after Italians in the northern regions voted overwhelmingly in favour of greater autonomy at a referendum held over the weekend. 

Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said he was open to negotiations on how Lombardy and Veneto "wanted to proceed", Reuters reported. 

Two of Kurdistan’s main political parties announced their willingness to enter into unconditional talks with Baghdad centred around the Iraqi constitution, reports Rudaw news.

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) called for Baghdad to enter into unconditional following a meeting with 30 other parties in  the Kurdistan Region on Sunday.

Residents of Lombardy and Veneto in Italy voted in a non-binding referendum this weekend over the question of greater financial autonomy to the regions. 

The local party, Lega Nord, which was openly calling for independence for Northern Italy creating a new state of 'Padania' hopes to secure a better financial agreement with Rome. 

Lega Nord argues the taxes collected in the Northern regions are wasted by Rome and not directed back to the regions. 

The Catalan government remained defiant on Sunday, stating it would not accept Madrid's plan of direct rule. 

Almost a half a million Catalans came out in protest the day before, demonstrating against the suspension of autonomy following Catalonia's referendum on independence. 

"The Spanish government was acting against the democratic will of the Catalans after refusing all offers of dialogue," the Catalan leader, Carles Puigdemont said. 

Iraq’s highest court has ordered the arrest of the vice-president of Kurdistan Kosrat Rasul for calling Iraqi troops deployed in Kirkuk “occupying forces,” reports the BBC.

The Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq labelled Mr Rasul’s remarks as an incitement to violence.

Spain is holding a special cabinet meeting to approve measures that will allow its government to take direct control of the semi-autonomous region of Catalonia.

Spanish prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is expected to make a statement later today outlining whether Spain will invoke Article 155 of its constitution, which allows the government to use “necessary measures” to take over powers of a regional authority.

The United Nations on Thursday expressed concern about reports of the forced displacement of Kurds from Kirkuk, which was recently taken over by Iraqi forces following a Kurdish indepedence referundum.  

Spain moved on Thursday to suspend Catalan's autonomy after the Catalan leader refused to meet the deadline Madrid imposed on the to abandon independence. 

Madrid said in a statement on Thursday that it would invoke article 155 of the Spanish constitution, which would begin stripping the region of its autonomy.