Bob James’ Spanish News Headlines – Visual format – Dateline: 12/12/25 – Latest
A key figure in one of Spain’s most notorious financial misconduct cases has been captured in the Algarve after nearly two years on the run.
Portugese police, working closely with the Guardia Civil, arrested 55-year-old Natalio Grueso under a European arrest warrant for an eight-year prison sentence on charges of embezzlement and forgery.
The man – the former general director of the Óscar Niemeyer International Cultural Centre in Avilés – was also the subject of an Interpol Red Notice and had been evading justice since late 2023. The Supreme Court had ruled him a central figure in the so-called “Niemeyer Case,” a systematic misuse of public funds and falsified documents.
The head of the public broadcaster RTVE, Jose Pablo Lopez, criticized Eurovision Song Contest Director Martin Green yesterday for issuing an open letter to fans that did not mention Gaza or Israel, despite what he called the “worst reputational crisis in the history of the European Broadcasting Union.”
Martin Green published the letter as the contest faces mounting tensions, with five national broadcasters—Spain, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Ireland, and Iceland—withdrawing in protest over Israel’s continued participation amid the Gaza war.
Lopez said the director’s message fell far short of addressing the gravity of the situation.
He further noted that on the same night new rules were adopted, Israeli officials publicly stated they had influenced delegaes politically to secure the country’s continued presence in the competition.
EBU members recently opted not to hold a vote on Israel’s participation in next year’s contest, effectively allowing the country to remain.
Motorists face a fresh round of toll increases from 1 January marking the country’s most significant adjustment since the government eased years of price restrictions. The rise coincides with permanent changes to one of the busiest corridors .. the AP7 ring road around Alicante, which is now officially toll-free.
The announcement comes at a time when the road network is under pressure from higher traffic volumes, inflation, and long-standing financial disputes between the state and private toll operators.
Tolls are revised every January, but the 2026 increase is not a routine inflation update.
For several years, successive governments capped or froze annual rises to shield households from spiralling living costs. While the policy was popular with drivers, it left private concession holders with shortfalls they say hindered long-term maintenance and safety works.
That’s the latest from TRE, I’m Bob James.
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