SPAIN: Two bombs exploded near highways in northern Spain yesterday after a warning that five devices had been planted by Basque separatists Eta, who have stepped up their violent campaign for independence in recent weeks.
Authorities said the explosions were quite small and there were no reports of injuries. Another warning came in the early afternoon that a sixth bomb had been planted in San Sebastian. Police cordoned off the area.
After months of relative quiet, Eta has resumed its bombing campaign, scotching hopes that the group could be close to a truce.
The bombs coincided with a regional general strike called by Batasuna, a separatist party outlawed for its links to Eta, to protest against a Basque government ban on people publicly paying tribute to two Eta members who died in jail last week.
The strike had minimal following in the region, politicians and business leaders said, but there were a number of violent incidents with pickets.
Based on the strike call and the bombs, a high court prosecutor in Madrid quickly called Batasuna's leader, Arnaldo Otegi, to appear before him next Monday.
Otegi has served jail terms before and is free on bail of €400,000 while the high court prepares a case against him. The judge wants Otegi to answer new charges of "various criminal acts" following yesterday's incidents.
Eta has killed about 800 people since 1968, in its fight for an independent Basque state straddling northern Spain and southwestern France. The group, branded terrorists by the EU and the United States, has not killed anybody since 2003.- (Reuters)