The Spanish government sacked Catalonia's president and dismissed its parliament on Friday, hours after the region declared itself an independent nation.

After the Catalan parliament voted to declare independence on Friday Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy called for a press conference to announce that a new regional election will be held in Catalonia on December 21.

In Barcelona, protesters against independence of Catalonia took to the streets at around 6pm, leading to some confrontations with regional police officers.

And some 6,000 people celebrated the call of independence for Catalonia in the city, wielding Catalan regional flags to express the joy of independence.