MADRID — A Spanish judge on Tuesday withdrew international arrest warrants for ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont and four members of his former Cabinet who have been fighting extradition from Belgium.

A Supreme Court spokesman said that the five could still be arrested if they go back to Spain, however, because they are still being sought at home for possible crimes related to the independence bid in northeastern Catalonia.

In a surprise move, Supreme Court magistrate Pablo Llarena said on Tuesday that individual warrants don’t apply anymore because the alleged crimes were a group action, according to new evidence.

He also said that the politicians have shown their ‘‘intention to return to Spain’’ in order to run for regional elections in Catalonia.

But Puigdemont’s Belgian lawyer, Paul Bekaert, said that the Catalan separatist leader wasn’t planning an immediate return.

‘‘For the moment, he stays in Belgium,’’ Bekaert said.

A spokeswoman for the Brussels prosecution’s office said that Belgian authorities will call for an extra session on the case so the proceedings can be stopped.

But with the warrant withdrawal official, Puigdemont is fully free in his movements and no longer bound to respect the initial restrictions, which included the provision that he had to stay in Belgium.

ASSOCIATED PRESS