National Court requests information from NATO about Tsunami Democràtic airport protest

Spain's National Court has asked NATO and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for information on the impact the Tsunami Democràtic protest at Barcelona airport had on international air traffic.

According to the investigating judge Manuel García-Castellón, Tsunami Domcràtic's action "endangered the security of the airport," both for the police officers and the demonstrators, but also for the travelers who were on a plane at the time.

"The attempt to prevent air traffic controllers from changing shifts was not only intended to cause economic damage, but could have had a catastrophic result with unforeseeable consequences for people in flight at the time," the text reads.

The judge has asked the EASA to report any incidents related to air traffic recorded on October 14, 2019, the day of the events. He wants to assess whether any flight destined for El Prat airport was diverted and for what reason, in order to determine whether the protest had any impact on the operation of other national and international airports.

Death of French tourist during protest

Manuel García-Castellón issued a resolution on Monday in which he offered the family of the French tourist who died of a heart attack during the protest to be a part of the proceedings.

The judge also asked for the complete medical history of the deceased - documentation requested from the Bellvitge Hospital.

The daughter of the deceased French tourist gave an interview with Spanish newspaper El Mundo over the weekend in which she says the Tsunami Democràtic protest contributed to her father's death.

"Of course [the protesters] influenced his heart disease, of course his death was because of it. The heat, the stress, it's not the same to arrive by car, without nerves," Aurelie Scherzinger said. "Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't have happened."

Scherzinger explained that her father, Jean Claude Joseph Scherzinger, had just retired and flying through Barcelona on his way home from a holiday in October 2019. 

The Tsunami Democràtic protest was organized in response to the sentencing of the leaders of the 2017 independence referendum and aimed to shut down activity at the facility.

Pro-independence leaders under terrorism investigation

Spain's National Court added former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont and Esquerra General Secretary Marta Rovira in its investigation into the protest group Tsunami Democràtic in November.

The pair, both living in exile since the peak of the independence crisis in 2017, are being investigated along with ten others. 

The judge is investigating potential crimes of terrorism for actions done by the anonymous protest group. However, the public prosecutor will appeal against the decision, as they do not believe the events constitute a crime of terrorism.