Elections to the Catalan parliament would then be held within three months.

The Catalan parliament enacted its own law in a vote on 6 September.

First the Catalan parliament, then the Spanish government, now the judiciary.

He had resigned from the cabinet before the Catalan parliament voted for independence.

Spain's Constitutional Court suspended a Catalan parliament session that had been planned for Monday.

Parties seeking to break with Spain won a majority of seats in the Catalan parliament.

On Friday afternoon, the Catalan parliament voted in favour of establishing a sovereign, independent republic.

The Catalan parliament had scheduled an investiture vote for jailed activist Jordi Sànchez on Friday.

The speaker of the Catalan parliament said on Thursday the court's decision damaged freedom of expression.

Meanwhile, speculation is mounting that the Catalan parliament will issue a declaration of independence on Friday.

Radical elements want him to make the Catalan parliament declare independence unilaterally on Thursday or Friday.

The measures came early on Saturday after the Catalan parliament voted to declare independence the previous day.

Junqueras has asked for release from jail to attend the first meeting of the new Catalan parliament.

Photo: AFP The measures on Saturday morning came after the Catalan parliament voted to declare independence on Friday.

Catalan parliament president Roger Torrent described Mr Puigdemont's conditional release as "very good news" on Twitter.

Thousands of people came out onto the streets of Barcelona to celebrate the Catalan parliament's declaration of independence.