Carles Puigdemont, Catalonia’s leader, sort of proclaimed independence on Oct. 10, prompting Madrid to ask him to clarify if he had actually done so. Then the Catalan Parliament officially voted for independence, passing a resolution on Oct. 27 to “create a Catalan republic as an independent state.” The Constitutional Court ruled the declaration null and void.

Within an hour of the Parliament’s vote, the Spanish Senate in Madrid voted to give Mr. Rajoy emergency powers, under Article 155 of the Spanish Constitution, to end the drive toward secession. Mr. Rajoy took control of Catalonia, firing Mr. Puigdemont and his cabinet, dissolving the Catalan Parliament and ordering that regional elections be held in December.

The Spanish attorney general said on Oct. 30 that Mr. Puigdemont and other top regional officials should be prosecuted for rebellion. Some members of the regional government were jailed pending trial; Mr. Puigdemont and others appeared in Belgium, saying they had traveled there to guarantee themselves fair trials.

After a Spanish judge issued an international arrest warrant on Nov. 3 for Mr. Puigdemont and four former members of his cabinet, the five turned themselves in to the Belgian police on Nov. 5. They were released that night, but were prohibited from leaving Belgium without an investigative judge’s permission.

As the case moves through the Belgian courts, Mr. Puigdemont could find himself still in Brussels when Catalonia holds regional elections in December. Other prominent Catalan politicians could run for office from a Madrid jail, pending trial.

How have people in Spain reacted?