MADRID (Reuters) - Twenty-five Catalan leaders will be tried for rebellion, embezzlement or disobeying the state, Spain’s Supreme Court ruled on Friday, in a sharp escalation of legal action against separatists in the northeastern region.

Catalan politician Josep Rull says goodbye to his wife Meritxell Lluis while returning to the Supreme Court during a break in proceedings as part of an investigation into Catalonia's banned bid for independence in Madrid, Spain, March 23, 2018. REUTERS/Susana Vera

One of the leaders facing up to 25 years in prison if convicted, Marta Rovira, earlier said she had already fled Spain, joining five others in exile. On Friday evening, Supreme Court judge Pablo Llarena ordered an international arrest warrant for all six.

The ruling raised the stakes in Madrid’s efforts to contain separatists in Catalonia, where a banned referendum backed independence last year.

The case will be closely watched by separatist groups across Europe and beyond. Rights groups have already criticised the extent of Madrid’s crackdown - though the European Union, wary of any splintering of its member states, has firmly supported the Spanish government’s response.

Catalonia has been in political limbo since Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy took over its regional government after it unilaterally declared independence following the October plebiscite.

Llarena said on Friday 13 leaders, including Rovira and former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont who is already in exile in Brussels, will be tried for rebellion.

Another 12 will be tried for embezzlement or disobeying the state through their role in holding the referendum or declaring independence.

Puigdemont and fellow separatists have all denied any wrongdoing, saying the plebiscite gave them the authority to break away from Spain.

‘A DIFFICULT ROAD’

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The vote was boycotted by Catalans opposed to the region splitting from Spain. Public support for the independence of Catalonia, which has its own language, extensive devolved powers and an economy as large as Portugal’s, fluctuates either side of 40 percent in polls.

Judge Llarena ordered jail for five of the leaders pending their trial as he considered there was enough evidence that they committed a crime. He did not set a date for the trial.

The five appeared before the court on Friday to be notified they would face trial and were detained immediately.

Among them was Jordi Turull, a close ally of Puigdemont who was put forward on Thursday to become the next regional president, although he failed to obtain enough votes after a small far-left secessionist group broke ranks and abstained.

The court’s decision means a second leadership vote for Turull which was due to take place on Saturday will not happen because his presence is compulsory.

However, late on Friday, Catalan parliament speaker Roger Torrent said he would go ahead with the session and read a statement in support of those jailed earlier in the day.

Rovira, the head of the separatist Esquerra Republicana party, said before the judge’s announcement on Friday she had fled to avoid prosecution.

“Exile will be a difficult road, but it is the only way I have to recover my political voice,” Rovira said in a letter. “Long live a Catalan Republic for all!”

The court, in a written ruling, requested that 14 members of the previous Catalan regional administration deposit 2.1 million euros ($2.59 million) in a bank account to pay back the money used to hold the referendum and cover judicial costs.

Several separatist leaders, including former Catalan vice president Oriol Junqueras, have been in custody since last year.