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Airport authority AENA sell-off hits delay

A last-minute objection by the Economy Ministry means that the agency which manages Spain’s airports will remain entirely in public hands at least until 2015. READ

Weather watch

Temperatures are set to plummet and come in line with averages for this time of year. Photo of rainy day: Shutterstock

Spain's 'mini-summer' set for snowy finale

After a period of unusually warm weather across much of the country, Spain is now set for cooler temperatures with a cold front bringing rain by the bucketful and even the first snows of the autumn. READ

Cheerleaders in Halloween costumes perform during a Euroleague basketball match in Madrid. Photo: DANI POZO/AFP

Halloween tragedy jail terms an ‘insult’: mum

Two years after five young women were killed in Madrid Halloween party disaster, the mother of one victim makes a passionate plea for justice as the case judge also slams Spain’s court system. READ

A man cleans a relatives grave in Barcelona on All Saints' Day, November 1st, 2012. Photo: Lluis Gene/AFP

Spanish cemetery launches online funerals

A groundbreaking new service in the Spanish city of Valencia will let people watch the funerals of their loved ones online wherever they are in the world. READ

Catalan independentist flags during celebrations of Catalonia National Day in Barcelona on September 11, 2014. Photo: Lluis Gene/AFP

Cabinet moves to block new Catalan ballot

Catalonia’s breakaway president called for a popular consultation on November 9 with same questions on region’s status as had been planned for court-suspended referendum. READ

Former Spanish leader José María Aznar was angered by the West's support of rebels who eventually ousted Colonel Gaddafi from power. Photo: Pedro Armestre/AFP

Aznar admits to multi-million Gaddafi deal

Former Spanish prime minister signed a contract with an energy company to clinch the Libyan’s approval for desalination plants, but war against the dictator frustrated the eventual sale. READ

Alicante town hall officials open the first Dealz store on the Costa Blanca.

UK-style 'pound shops' launch in crisis-hit Spain

The UK chain Poundland has entered the Spanish market with its formula of top-brand products at rock-bottom prices now available in Alicante, Torremolinos and, as of Friday, Madrid. READ

A bullfight in Malaga in August. File photo: Jorge Guerrero/AFP

Ex-bullfighter threatens lawyer with hoe

A former bullfighter was arrested by police on Thursday after he appeared at the offices of his lawyer bearing a hoe and spraying insults. READ

The ring would transfer its profits to Morocco where its leaders would launder the money by buying real estate. Photo of man with needle: Shutterstock

Police smash major heroin ring in Catalonia

Police in Spain's Catalonia region said on Thursday they have crushed a major heroin smuggling ring with the arrest of 36 people and the seizure of 2 million ($2.5 million) worth of heroin. READ

Spanish High Court judge Eloy Velasco arrives at the National Court in Madrid on Thursday, during a hearing in an alleged corruption scandal involving local government construction contracts. Photo: A

Spanish judge accuses 26 in graft scandal

A judge in Spain has launched judicial investigations into 26 suspects including governing party politicians and businessmen in a bribery probe that has seriously embarrassed the government, according to written rulings released on Thursday. READ

Features

Spain's stunning Alhambra Islamic palaces: Shutterstock

Take The Local's Spanish history quiz

Spain is full of famous places, faces and names. But how well do you know the history of this amazing country? Find in The Local's latest quiz! READ

The Local List

You had better listen up. Photo of woman with wooden spoon: Shutterstock

Top ten: things your Spanish 'mamá' says

Spanish mothers are renowned for their close relationships with their children. But while they may come across as over-protective, they ultimately do it because they care. Here, The Local lists ten things she might say. READ

Cinema prize

Antonio Banderas has starred in over 100 movies, playing Benito Mussolini and Che Guevara along the way. Screen grab/YouTube

Gallery: Hits and misses of Antonio Banderas

The Málaga-born actor who cut his teeth with Pedro Almodóvar before conquering Hollywood is to be awarded the Goya (or Spanish Oscar) of Honour for lifetime achievement by Spain's Film Academy. Here The Local casts an eye over some of the best and worst films he's starred in. READ

Spanish Face of the Week

Francisco Nicolás Gómez Iglesias was one of just 2,000 people at the proclamation party for Spain's new king Felipe (pictured) in June. File photo: Andrew Burton/Getty Images/AFP

Exposed: student conman who fooled king

A 20-year-old student from an elite business school who was arrested last week on suspicion of swindling, forging documents and impersonating public officials cozied up to the cream of Spanish society, even managing to attend King Felipe VI’s proclamation. READ

Spanish Language

Photo of a couple: Shutterstock

Top Ten: best new Spanish words

Spain’s royal language watchdog, the RAE, has just published its massive new dictionary. Here The Local lists ten of the best words appearing for the very first time for your reading pleasure. READ

More News

The Local List

Photo of corrupt man: Shutterstock

Ten shocking corruption cases hurting Spain

In a week which has seen yet another major corruption scandal bust wide open in Spain, The Local casts an eye over some of the major cases still causing headaches for the country's judges. You've been warned. READ

A spokesman for Spain's centrist UPyD party said the reform was "one of worst laws of this legislature". Google photo: Shutterstock

Spain approves hotly disputed 'Google tax'

Technology giant Google says it is "disappointed" after Thursday's decision by the Spanish parliament to approve the introduction of charges for aggregating news stories in search engine results. READ

A Spanish soldier walks with his backpack past US soldiers at US Camp Echo in the central Iraqi town of Diwaniya in May 2004. File photo: Roberto Schmidt/AFP

Military drops torture case against soliders

Five Spanish soldiers charged with war crimes over allegations they tortured prisoners in Iraq have been left off by a military court, with judges using a precedent set by former US president George Bush. READ

The old church at Sant Romà de Sau in central Catalonia. Photo: Josep Enric/Flickr

€2m price tag for 'ghost village' spooks buyers

Attempts to sell off an abandoned Catalan village next to a reservoir which dates back to the times of former Spanish dictator Francisco Franco have proved a damp squib, with absolutely no bids coming in. READ

Photo of warehouse: Shutterstock

Spain grows by 0.5 percent in third quarter

Five straight quarters of growth have seen Spain's unemployment drop to lowest level since 2011, although it still stands at over 23 percent. READ

Graffiti reading "Death to Islamic State (Isis)" in the Jurf al-Sakhr area, north of the Shiite shrine city of Karbala, Iraq, on Monday. Photo: Haidar Hamdani/AFP

Isis wants to spread Ebola: security chief

The Spanish government is taking seriously discussions in internet chat rooms on how terrorists could use biological weapons including Ebola in its war against the West, a top official said in parliament on Wednesday. READ

Coulrophobia, or fear of clowns, has swept across France in recent weeks. Photo of scary clown: Shutterstock

'Scary clown' craze hits Spanish city

A 'scary clown' craze that has caused panic across France in recent weeks has arrived in the northern Spanish city of Gijón, local media are reporting. READ

Police said the suspect had been on the run since being sentenced to 17 years in jail in 2006 for drug smuggling and other crimes. Photo: Guardia Civil

Top drug lord 'hid cocaine inside bananas'

Spanish police said on Wednesday they had arrested nine people, including one of the country's biggest drug smugglers, after finding cocaine hidden among a shipment of bananas from Colombia. READ

Spaniards mistakenly believe that the population includes eight times more Muslim people than it actually does. Photo: Lluis Gene/AFP

Spaniards 'ignorant' on impact of immigration

Spaniards massively overestimate the number of people in their country who are Muslims, unemployed or teenage mothers, but are well-informed about how long they can expect to live, according to a new 'ignorance index' released on Wednesday. READ

Corruption focus

A man disguised as Spain's Primer Minister Mariano Rajoy takes part to a protest against corruption in 2013. File photo: Jaime Reina/AFP

'Corruption virus is in the guts of the system'

A Madrid court on Wednesday summoned 17 suspects including five mayors and a French energy executive for questioning in a corruption scandal that has rocked the Spain government, while there were also heated exchanges in the national parliament. READ

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From our other editions:

The Local List

Photo: Wings for Life World Run

Ten things to never say to an Austrian

Since it declared its everlasting neutrality on October 26, 1955, the national holiday, the Alpine country of Austria has gone from strength to strength, boasting a staggering twenty Nobel Prize laureates, including seven in physiology or medicine, five in chemistry, three in physics and economist Friedrich Hayek. READ

Nadal: calling it quits for the season after upset loss. Photo: AFP

Nadal calls time as Federer advances

Teenage wildcard Borna Coric stunned Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals of the Swiss Indoors tennis tournament in Basel on Friday, a defeat which marked the end of the Spaniard's season. READ

Photo: DPA

Thief distracts staff by squirting her breast milk

A mother in central Germany came up with an unusual tactic to allegedly steal from a pharmacy on Monday. READ

Swede Gottfrid Svartholm Warg was found guilty of hacking into CSC. File photo: Jan Düsing/Scanpix

Pirate Bay founder guilty in historic hacker case

UPDATED: Gottrid Svartholm Warg and his 21-year-old Danish co-defendant were found guilty on Thursday morning, with the Dane released on time served and Warg to be sentenced on Friday. READ

A man holds medals during the naturist swimming championship. Photo: Sebastien Bozon/AFP

France falls to Germans in nude swim tourney

France is known for its clothing-optional beaches, but this weekend it was an international nude swimming competition that drew au naturel swimmers. And of course the Germans took the most medals. READ

Ebola crisis

S troops at the Vicenza base. Photo: Edward Braly/HO US Army/AFP

Uproar over US troops' Ebola quarantine in Italy

The decision to put a dozen American soldiers returning from Liberia into quarantine for Ebola at their base near Venice rather than in the United States sparked controversy in Italy on Wednesday. READ