José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
Spanish politician
Photo: Monika Flueckiger, World Economic Forum from Cologny, Switzerland, CC BY-SA 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons, cropped)
- 2d ago
Juan Rodríguez García-Lozano, father of former PM Zapatero, dies aged 100 in León
Juan Rodríguez García-Lozano, a lawyer and dean emeritus of León's bar association, died in León on Monday, 12 October 2026, aged 100. His son, former Spanish prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, is under investigation in the Plus Ultra case, which he denies.
- Oct 6
Spanish judge rejects Zapatero appeal over 1.3 million euro jewelry appraisal
National Court Judge José Luis Calama ruled that Joyería Yanes will conduct an exhaustive second appraisal of jewelry seized from former prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero's office safe, rejecting defense claims of bias.
- Sep 30
Telefónica shifts registered office to Las Tablas and restructures Spanish operations into three units
The board of directors approved a new operational structure dividing Telefónica España into three independent divisions while formally relocating its registered office to Distrito Telefónica following the sale of its Gran Vía building.
- Sep 25
Pedro Sánchez faces questions on corruption during Harvard lecture on artificial intelligence
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez addressed students at Harvard University on the risks of tech oligarchs, but the session shifted to questions about domestic corruption cases and the Pegasus phone hack.
- Sep 23
Germany extradites Dutch financier Simon Verhoeven to Spain over Plus Ultra bailout loans
German authorities will transfer Dutch broker Simon Leendert Verhoeven to Madrid on 24 September to face questioning by the Audiencia Nacional over bridge loans tied to airline Plus Ultra.
- Sep 22
Spanish Congress permanently revokes press credentials of EDATV commentator Vito Quiles
The Bureau of Spain's Congress of Deputies voted to permanently withdraw press accreditation from EDATV commentator Vito Quiles following repeated violations of parliamentary press rules.
- Sep 21
Zapatero challenges second appraisal of seized 1.3 million euro jewelry in Spanish court
Lawyers for former Spanish prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero appealed a court order for a second appraisal of more than 60 seized jewels valued at 1.3 million euros, questioning the expert firm's impartiality.
- Sep 16
Spain passes care reform cutting dependency processing to three months and guaranteeing 50% state funding
The Congress of Deputies approved legislation requiring the state to co-fund 50% of dependency care, while adding 6.2 billion euros in regional funding through 2027 and cutting evaluation deadlines to three months.
- Sep 6
Spanish Congress moves to reject 2024 accounts as judicial probes expand around PSOE
Spain's parliament prepares to reject the 2024 state accounts while the National Court probes alleged illegal party funding involving Venezuelan oil contracts and cash payments.
- Sep 4
Former Plus Ultra CEO confirms €530,000 fee paid to Zapatero associate for €53m state bailout
Roberto Roselli told Spain's National Court that the airline paid a 1% commission to an associate of former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero to secure a €53 million government rescue in 2021.
- Aug 4
Pepe Habichuela, flamenco guitar legend and Gran Cruz recipient, dies at 82
The Granada-born guitarist, a pivotal figure in contemporary flamenco and member of a storied gitano dynasty, had been away from the stage since the summer of 2024 because of a long illness.
- Aug 3
Zapatero appeals judge's 'blank cheque' to police in Plus Ultra case, calling bank account probe a 'fishing expedition'
Former Spanish prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero filed an appeal on Monday against a judge's order allowing the UDEF economic crimes unit to freely expand its investigation into his family's bank accounts, arguing the broad mandate violates fundamental rights.
- Jul 31
Spain battles its worst wildfire year on record: 186,544 hectares burned by August as multiple fronts remain active
Fires in Ávila, Cáceres, Zamora, and Huesca continue to challenge crews as the country surpasses its annual record for burned area in just seven months, with 38 large fires recorded.
- Jul 30
Ceuta court expels 12 migrants as tunnel fire reveals subterranean camp and Morocco arrests 10
A Spanish court ordered five-year expulsions for 12 Moroccan nationals following assaults on soldiers, hours after a blaze in sealed military tunnels near the university campus uncovered dozens living underground.
- Jul 29
Spanish judge orders probe into 57 accounts of former PM Zapatero, his daughters and secretary in Plus Ultra case
National Court magistrate José Luis Calama has allowed the UDEF police unit to trace movements in dozens of accounts held by the former prime minister, his two daughters, his secretary and 13 companies linked to the Plus Ultra airline bailout.
- Jul 28
Sánchez opens election campaign from Moncloa with economic data blitz and defense of family in corruption cases
Pedro Sánchez used his end-of-term press conference at Moncloa to tout economic gains and defend his wife and brother against corruption cases, framing the judicial scrutiny as a political attack ahead of elections.
- Jul 25
Plus Ultra president and CEO resign after admitting 1% bailout fee went to Zapatero's friend
Julio Martínez Sola and Roberto Roselli quit the Spanish airline they led, days after admitting in court that the company paid a 1% commission on its €53 million pandemic bailout to a friend of former prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero.
- Jul 23
Zapatero's first interview since indictment adds no new facts, prosecutor seeks expanded jewelry report
Former Spanish PM José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero broke two months of silence on TVE but offered no new evidence, while Anticorruption prosecutors push for a deeper probe into the €1.3m jewelry stash found in his office.
- Jul 15
Spain's PSOE widens lead over PP to 7.9 points in July CIS poll despite Ábalos corruption sentencing
The governing Socialists reached 33% estimated vote share in the July CIS barometer, fielded days after former minister José Luis Ábalos received a 24-year prison sentence for corruption.
- Jul 14
Spain's PM brother handed 9-year public office ban in Badajoz prevarication case, court cites nepotism
A Spanish court sentenced the brother of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to nine years of disqualification from public office, triggering a wave of appeals and fierce political reactions. The ruling condemned the creation of a tailor-made job at a provincial council.