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Basque ETA separatists taking up arms again
The militant group blames the government for a 'failed peace process,' prompting fears of an 'imminent' attack in Spain.
Almost 15 months after declaring a permanent ceasefire with the Spanish government, the Basque separatist group ETA has announced it will take up arms again as of midnight Tuesday.
Basque country broadcaster eitb24 reports that in a statement published in two Basque newspapers, ETA declared that it is ending its ceasefire because "minimum democratic conditions" for negotiating peace with the government of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero "do not exist."
[ETA] blamed Zapatero for the failure of the peace process, and contended that the Basque leg of local elections on May 27 were illegitimate because most pro-independence politicians that wanted to run were barred by Spanish courts on grounds of links to ETA's outlawed political wing, Batasuna. The pro-independence movement had called these elections a key part of the peace process.
"Zapatero's character has turned into a fascism that left parties and citizens without rights," ETA said. Zapatero will address the nation later Tuesday, his office said.
ETA reiterated assertions that despite its having called the cease-fire, the Spanish judicial system continued to arrest and hold trials of ETA members and suspects. In the past, it has suggested the government committed itself to going easy on the pro-independence movement while negotiations were under way.
The translated statement from ETA is available on the eitb24 website. ETA, whose name is a Basque acronym for "Basque Homeland and Freedom," began fighting for a Basque nation in the 1960s during the reign of Gen. Francisco Franco's dictatorship. The group continued to commit acts of violence, including bombings and assassinations, after Spain's turn to democracy in the 1970s. It is considered a terrorist group by both the European Union and the United States.
The ETA statement was quickly condemned by Mr. Zapatero, reports Reuters.
"ETA's decision is absolutely the opposite of what Basque and Spanish society want: the road to peace," Zapatero told reporters.
"Spanish society has shown over a long period that pain does not sap its strength, that suffering does not reduce its determination," he said.
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