In the past week, Iran has seen the most widespread protests since the 1979 Revolution. While it is still smaller in size than the 2009 Green movement, it has spread far beyond the mainly urban areas of the big cities to which that movement was mainly confined. This is a sea-change and it has shaken the regime to its foundations.

The results of the 21st December Catalan elections represent a slap in the face for the strategy of the Spanish government and their efforts to introduce direct rule and smash the independence movement. Jorge Martin outlines the lessons from these elections results – and the movement seen over the past few months – in the struggle for a Catalan Republic.

Catalonia goes to the polls tomorrow in elections imposed by the Madrid government as part of the Article 155 measures. As Jorge Martin explains, this vote takes place in exceptional conditions of repression and the curtailment of democratic rights. With one day to go, the result of the elections is hard to predict.