Spain riot police smash way into Catalan voting center

Spanish riot police smashed their way into the polling station where Catalonia's regional leader was due to vote in the disputed independence referendum on Sunday. Scuffles erupted outside between police and people waiting to vote.

Spanish National Police prevents voters from reaching a voting site at a school assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, 1 Oct. 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed Saturday to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Civil guards force a man with a child to leave the entrance of a sports center, assigned to be a referendum polling station by the Catalan government in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Scuffles have erupted as voters protested as dozens of anti-rioting police broke into a polling station where the regional leader was expected to show up for voting on Sunday. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Civil Guard officers, wearing helmets and carrying shields, used a hammer to break the glass of the front door and a lock cutter to break into the Sant Julia de Ramis sports center near the city of Girona. At least one woman was injured outside the building and wheeled away on a stretcher by paramedics.

A woman cries after civil guards dragged people away from the entrance of a sports center, assigned to be a referendum polling station by the Catalan government in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Scuffles have erupted as voters protested as dozens of anti-rioting police broke into a polling station where the regional leader was expected to show up for voting on Sunday. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Clashes broke out less than an hour after polls opened, and not long before Catalonia regional president Carles Puigdemont was expected to turn up to vote. Polling station workers inside the building reacted peacefully and broke out into songs and chants challenging the officers' presence.

National Police and Civil Guard officers also showed up in other polling centers where Catalan officials were expected.

People gather outside a school assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government at the Gracia neighborhood in Barcelona, Spain, early Sunday, 1 Oct. 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain. (AP Photo/Bob Edme)

Catalans defied rain and police orders to leave designated polling stations for the banned referendum on the region's secession that has challenged Spain's political and institutional order.

The country's Constitutional Court has suspended the vote and the Spanish central government says it's illegal. Regional separatist leaders have pledged to hold it anyway, promising to declare independence if the "yes" side wins, and have called on 5.3 million eligible voters to cast ballots.

Reporters with The Associated Press saw ballot boxes wrapped in plastic bags being carried into some of the polling stations in Barcelona occupied by parents, children and activists before some polling stations could open at 9 a.m. (0700 GMT) as scheduled.

People gather outside a school assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government at the Gracia neighborhood in Barcelona, Spain, early Sunday, 1 Oct. 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain. (AP Photo/Bob Edme)

After some spent the night at the Miquel Tarradell school, assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government, pro-referendum supporters gather at the hall in Barcelona, Spain, early Sunday, 1 Oct. 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

The plastic ballot boxes, bearing the seal of the Catalan regional government, were placed on tables, prompting the cheering of hopeful voters that had gathered in schools before dawn.

Some 2,300 facilities had been designated as polling stations, but it was unclear how many were able to open. The Ministry of Interior didn't provide a number late on Saturday when it said that "most" of them had been sealed off and that only "some" remained occupied.

After some spent the night at the Miquel Tarradell school, assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government, pro-referendum supporters gather at the hall in Barcelona, Spain, early Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Police have received orders to avoid the use of force and only have been warning people to vacate the facilities. They are also supposed to confiscate ballots and ballot boxes.

In an effort to overcome myriad obstacles, Catalan officials announced that voters would be allowed to cast ballots in any location and using ballots printed at home, rather than in designated polling stations as previously announced.

Pro-referendum supporters gather at the Escola Industrial, a school assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government, in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain.(AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Regional government spokesman Jordi Turull also said that a group of "academics and professionals" would serve as election observers. The official electoral board appointed by the regional parliament was disbanded last week to avoid hefty fines by Spain's Constitutional Court.

"We are under conditions to be able to celebrate a self-determination referendum with guarantees," Turull said in a press conference. "Our goal is that all Catalans can vote."

Tension has been on the rise since the vote was called in early September, crystalizing years of defiance by separatists in the affluent region, which contributes a fifth of Spain's 1.1 trillion-euro economy ($1.32 trillion.)

Spain's 2008-2013 financial crisis and harsh austerity measures fueled frustration in Catalonia for setbacks in efforts to gain greater autonomy, with many Catalans feeling they could do better on their own.

Pro-referendum supporters gather at the Escola Industrial, a school assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government, in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain.(AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Pro-referendum supporters sleep at the yard of the Escola Industrial, a school listed to be a polling station by the Catalan government, in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain.(AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Courts and police have been cracking down for days to halt the vote, confiscating 10 million paper ballots and arresting key officials involved in the preparations. On Saturday, Civil Guard agents dismantled the technology to connect voting stations, count the votes and vote online, leading the Spanish government to announce that holding the referendum would be "impossible."

Joaquim Bosch, a 73-year-old retiree at Princep de Viana high school, where a crowd of 20 people was growing Sunday morning, said he was uneasy about a possible police response to the crowds.

"I have come to vote to defend the rights of my country, which is Catalonia," Bosch said. "I vote because of the mistreatment of Catalonia by Spain for many years."

After some spent the night at the Miquel Tarradell school, assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government, pro-referendum supporters gather at the hall in Barcelona, Spain, early Sunday, 1 Oct. 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

After some spent the night pro-referendum supporters sit at the Miquel Tarradell school, listed to be a polling station by the Catalan government, in Barcelona, Spain, early Sunday, 1 Oct. 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

On Saturday, Spain's foreign minister dismissed the planned vote as anti-democratic, saying it runs "counter to the goals and ideals" of the European Union.

"What they are pushing is not democracy. It is a mockery of democracy, a travesty of democracy," Alfonso Dastis told The Associated Press in an interview.

Dozens of protests have been taking place in Catalonia and across Spain, some to condemn the crackdown on the vote and others supporting the nation's unity against the independence bid.

As journalists take pictures, a parked tractor blocks the door of a sports center, assigned to be a polling station by the Catalan government and where Catalan President Carles Puigdemont is expected to vote, in Sant Julia de Ramis, near Girona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Police officers of the Mossos d'Esquadra, Catalan police, check the I.D. of a person at a school listed to be a polling station by the Catalan government at the Gracia neighborhood in Barcelona, Spain, early Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Catalan pro-referendum supporters vowed to ignore a police ultimatum to leave the schools they are occupying to use in a vote seeking independence from Spain. (AP Photo/Bob Edme)

No minimum turnout has been set for the validity of the vote by Catalan authorities. Regional government officials initially hoped for a turnout greater than the 2.3 million people who voted in a mock referendum in 2014 in which 80 percent favored independence but have recently signaled that they would consider the vote valid with a lower number given the challenges to hold it.

Separatist Catalan leaders have pledged to declare independence from Spain within 48 hours of Sunday's vote if the 'yes' side wins.

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to arrive in Hungary on Wednesday to meet with its nationalist prime minister despite an international arrest warrant for the Israeli leader over the war in the Gaza Strip.

Netanyahu's four-day visit to Budapest is a sign of both his close relationship with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and the latter's growing hostility toward international institutions like the International Criminal Court, of which Hungary is a member.

Orbán, a conservative populist and close Netanyahu ally, has vowed to disregard the ICC warrant, accusing the world’s top war crimes court based in The Hague, Netherlands, of “interfering in an ongoing conflict for political purposes.”

Members of Orbán's government have suggested that Hungary, which became a signatory to the court in 2001, could withdraw. Currently, all countries in the 27-member European Union are signatories, and all members are required to detain suspects facing a warrant if they set foot on their soil. But the court relies on member countries to enforce that.

The ICC, the world’s only permanent global tribunal for war crimes and genocide, issued the arrest warrant in November for Netanyahu as well as for his former defense minister and Hamas’ military chief, accusing them of crimes against humanity in connection with the war in Gaza after the Hamas attack against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

Tens of thousands of Palestinians, many of them children, have been killed during the Israeli military’s response, which it resumed last month while shattering a ceasefire.

The warrants said there was reason to believe Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant used “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid to Gaza, and intentionally targeted civilians in Israel’s campaign against Hamas — charges that Israeli officials deny.

The ICC has criticized Hungary's decision to defy its warrant for Netanyahu. The court's spokesperson, Fadi El Abdallah, said it's not for parties to the ICC “to unilaterally determine the soundness of the Court’s legal decisions.”

Participating states have an obligation to enforce the court’s decisions, El Ebdallah told The Associated Press in an email, and may consult with the court if they disagree with its rulings.

Orbán, regarded by critics as the EU's most intransigent spoiler in the bloc's decision-making, is seen as using some of the tactics that Netanyahu has been accused of employing in Israel: subjugation of the judiciary, antagonism toward the EU and cracking down on civil society and human rights groups.

The two leaders are practitioners of “illiberal” governance — a term adopted by Orbán rejecting the tenets of liberal democracy — and are allied with U.S. President Donald Trump, who signed an executive order in February imposing sanctions on the ICC over its investigations of Israel.

For Netanyahu, the visit to Hungary offers another opportunity to defy the ICC warrant and project an image of statesmanship while he faces mounting protests at home.

He has faced mass protests by Israelis who fear his decision to resume the war endangers the lives of the remaining hostages held by Hamas. He has also sparked anger by trying to fire or sideline top officials in what critics view as a power grab and an attack on state institutions.

Along with resuming its offensive in Gaza last month, Israel halted all imports of food, fuel and humanitarian aid to the territory’s 2 million Palestinians to pressure Hamas to release more hostages and accept proposed changes to the truce agreement.

Erika Guevara-Rosas, the head of global research, advocacy and policy of human rights group Amnesty International, said in a statement that Hungary must arrest Netanyahu if he travels there and hand him over to the ICC.

“Hungary’s invitation shows contempt for international law and confirms that alleged war criminals wanted by the ICC are welcome on the streets of a European Union member state,” Guevara-Rosas said.

Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch, said Hungary allowing Netanyahu's visit "would be Orban’s latest assault on the rule of law, adding to the country’s dismal record on rights.”

In March 2023, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for war crimes, accusing him of responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine. Putin visited Mongolia, which is also a member of the ICC, in September last year, but he wasn't arrested. Last year, judges found that the country failed to uphold its legal obligations and referred the matter to the court’s oversight body.

Associated Press writers Molly Quell in Amsterdam and Joseph Krauss contributed to this report.

FILE - Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attend a press conference after their meeting in Jerusalem, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2019. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit, Pool, File)

FILE - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, and his Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban chat as they attend a signing ceremony in the Parliament building in Budapest, Hungary, Tuesday, July 18, 2017. (Balazs Mohai/MTI via AP, File)