Madrid - A judge at Spain's National Court on Thursday summoned for questioning the author of a top secret document which shows that former conservative premier Jose Maria Aznar allowed the United States to fly terrorist suspects via Spain to its military base in Guantanamo, Cuba.

Judge Ismael Moreno called former senior official Miguel Aguirre de Carcer for interrogation as a witness on December 17. The judge did so despite not having received the original document, dating from 2002, which he had requested.

Madrid - Espanyol midfielder Ivan de la Pena will be out of action for around a

Madrid/Barcelona - Nine people were injured overnight in Spanish demonstrations against the killing of a Greek student in Athens, police said Thursday.

Madrid - When a famous judge opened the first-ever judicial inquiry into the crimes of Spain's late dictator Francisco Franco in the autumn of 2008, it was as if he had unleashed an internal struggle within the national psyche.

The debate about the Franco era had been brewing already, becoming one of the hallmarks of 2008.

Judge Baltasar Garzon's attempt to look into 114,000 alleged killings in acts of repression during the 1936-39 civil war and Franco's ensuing 36-year dictatorship bitterly divided the nation, showing how difficult it still was for Spain to deal with the dictator's legacy.

Garzon finally dropped his inquiry, but the debate is far from over, and the case against Franco could end up in international courts.

Madrid- ­ Spain should increase the number of troops it sends on international peacekeeping missions, the country's defence minister told parliament Wednesday.

Current law allows no more than 3,000 Spanish troops to serve under foreign command, said Defence Minister Carme Chacon, announcing plans to propose lifting that limit when the cabinet meets December 31.

Madrid - Valencia will be without central defender Alexis for up to four months, the Spanish club announced on Tuesday night.