Two Spanish policemen were wounded in a gun battle with suspected members of the Basque separatist group ETA last night.
One suspected ETA member is believed to have been killed, police said this morning.
Police had gone to Lagran in Alava province after receiving a phone call reporting an accident in the area. They were fired on with a sawn-off shotgun. One policeman was seriously wounded while another suffered minor injuries.
Two masked attackers fled on foot after an exchange of shots with the police, leaving behind a car that police said had earlier been stolen at gunpoint. Several hours later police found a dead body near the ambush.
ETA has been blamed for more than 800 killings in a 35-year campaign for an independent state in northeastern Spain and southwestern France.
Both the United States and the European Union list the group as a terrorist organisation.