Archives for January 2011
January 13th, 2011
Police in Spain have recovered 162 kilos of cocaine with a street value of €15 million, hidden inside plastic bananas. They were concealed in a 22-ton shipment of real fruit that arrived from Ecuador, "The imitations with the drugs, which were very similar to real bananas, were hidden amongst a shipment ...
Continue reading €15m of Cocaine Found In Fake Bananas
January 13th, 2011
Investors showed renewed appetite for Spain today at its debut debt auction for 2011 that alleviated some concerns about the euro zone. Spain sold 3 billion euros of its five-year bonds, at the top end of the Treasury's target range at much less than the 150 basis point premium priced in ...
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January 12th, 2011
Spain must abolish a tax measure that subsidizes domestic companies that buy stakes in firms based outside the European Union, EU regulators said. The tax provision amounts to a “clear and unjustified advantage” to the Spanish-based companies, the European Commission said in an e-mailed statement from Brussels today. Spain
Continue reading EU Orders Spain to Scrap Tax Subsidy for Foreign Acquisitions
January 11th, 2011
Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero today announced he would accelerate the cleanup of the country's network of savings banks known as 'Cajas'. This means the cajas will disclose their exposure to real-estate and construction loans, which could require state-funded recapitalization of some.
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January 11th, 2011
The Spanish media lashed out at FIFA President Sepp Blatter on Tuesday after Lionel Messi won the Ballon d'Or ahead of Barcelona teammates Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez, who played for Spain when it won the World Cup. Spanish daily AS said "Spain is very angry," and Marca has "Two Giants ...
Continue reading Spanish Press Pour Scorn Over Messi Ballon d’Or Award
January 10th, 2011
The Basque separatist group Eta has announced a permanent ceasefire in its fight for independence from Spain. In a video statement sent to the media, the group said the truce would be "internationally verifiable". Eta's campaign for independence for the Basque
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January 10th, 2011
Spain's state broadcaster, TVE, has banned live bullfighting from its schedule, angering matadors and bullfighting fans who are already smarting over a ban in the eastern region of Catalonia. The broadcaster has decided bullfighting contravenes its code of conduct for programmes before Spain's 10pm watershed hour, when children
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January 7th, 2011
A Madrid neighborhood, where in recent years numerous immigrants, mainly South Americans, have settled, shared on Thursday the first prize in the extraordinary "El Niño" lottery that each year marks the end of the Christmas holidays in Spain. On January 6th each year, the Lottery Palace in Madrid holds the traditional ...
Continue reading El Niño Lottery Marks End of Christmas Holiday Season
January 5th, 2011
Hundreds of families gathered in Madrid on Tuesday, rallying for an investigation into decades-old cases of alleged state-supported kidnapping. The families released hundreds of helium balloons over central Madrid's famous Puerta del Sol square for the children they say were systematically stolen
Continue reading Families of Franco Regime’s Stolen Children Rally in Madrid
January 5th, 2011
Spanish police are registering 400 breaches a day since a tough new anti-smoking law to bars, restaurants and public places was introduced in Spain. Some establishments have refused to implement the law brought in at midnight on Saturday which bans lighting up in all public buildings, bars,
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