ETA Goes After Zapatero

A week after a bomb exploded in northern Madrid, ETA strikes again, this time in its own region. Another bomb exploded in front of Prime Minister Luis Zapatero’s Socialist Headquarters in the town of Lazkao on early Monday morning. No one was injured by the blast but severe damage to the building was the result of the bomb. The objective of the attack is to scare off Socialists and their idea of uniting the Basque Country with the rest of Spain. The Basque Socialist Party is gaining more and more popularity in the region and could possibly remove the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) from parliament. Zapatero was recently in the region promoting the Socialist Party before elections on March 1st. ETA does not want either party to win and is still showing their anger about the banning of the two parties closest to ETA, Askatasuna and D3M.

These attacks will continue to happen within the next few weeks up until the elections. These attacks have not injured nor killed anyone but with future attacks very possible you have to think just how many more attacks until some is killed. Luckily these bombs have been aimed more at making political statements protesting Zapatero and his Socialist Party. But with having killed more that 825 people over the past 50 years ETA will most likely strengthen these attacks and threaten the lives of fellow Spaniards. With each new day comes a possible new attack from ETA and the possibility of killing innocent compatriots.

On a much lighter note, Congratulations to Penélope Cruz on winning her first Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in the film Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Not only was it her first Acadamy Award but it was also the first time a Spanish actress won the award. The always beautiful Ms. Cruz was both surprised and grateful for the award but was well deserving of best supporting actress. This comes one year after her boyfried Javier Bardem won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role in No Country For Old Men. Felicidades Penélope.

Photo Emilio Flores for The New York Times; The Weinstein Company

What is next for ETA and Spain?

Plaza de Colón Madrid, Spain

Just two days after the Spanish Ministry of the Interior increased security in Madrid for fear of another ETA attack they deny the arrest of the separatist leader of ETA. Reports from AFP said that Iurgi Meninueta Mintegi or better know as “Aitor” was arrested early Saturday morning near the city of Bordeaux in the southwest part of France. But Spain’s Interior Ministry denied these national radio reports on Saturday, according to AFP. “Aitor”, who is only 26 years old, is the supposed leader of ETA who took control of the separatist group in November after the arrest of then top leaders "Txeroki" and "Gurbitz" in southwest France according to Spanish radio.

The Ministry of Interior believes ETA has some type of connection in Madrid after the car bomb that went off last week in the north business sector of the city. More agents have been brought in to the capital to keep an extra eye out for possible attacks.

It will be interesting to see the story of “Aitor” develop because I am confused by the early reports of his arrest but then the Spanish government denies having detained him. Why would the government hide the news of this very important step in stopping the terrorist group? And if he is actually in police custody what will be the next move for the separatist group without its leader? With elections in two weeks it seems an attack is lurking in the shadows. With the extra security in Madrid ETA will have a much harder time of a possible attack but that will probably not stop any attempts.

Countdown to the March 1st Election

So with the regional Basque elections coming soon the big question in Spain is what more will ETA do from now until the elections on March 1? After the car bomb in Madrid following the banning of Askatasuna and Democracia 3Millones all Spaniards will be on high alert of any terrorist attack. These two political parties serve as the voice of ETA and by banning them the Spanish government is taking away ETA’s political voice. Since the initial banning, Spanish high court judge Baltasar Garzón on Tuesday banned all activities by Askatasuna and Democracia 3 Millones for the next three years which could possibly be extended to five years. This new ban passed by Garzón officially stops all activities for the two parties making them powerless in Spanish and Basque politics. Garzón stated that Askatasuna and Democracia 3 Millones were formed after Herri Batasuna was banned in 2001 do to its relations with ETA.

“It is an adequate legal response to the specific dynamics of an organization like Batasuna-ETA, that gets integrated using methods that are clearly mafioso, disguised by complex and shadowy financing mechanisms, systematically evading the law, at promoting acts of violence, then at the same time either silencing or orchestrating them for their own illegal ends and against the basic principles the rule of law',” Garzón added.

So with ETA on the losing end of this situation it is almost inevitable that an attack will come between now and March 1. But just how far is ETA willing to go to show their unhappiness of the parties ban and more importantly a huge step back from seceding from Spain? I guess that is the chance the Spanish government is going to have to take to show that they will not be pushed around by ETA and its mafioso politicians. We can only hope that innocent people will not be killed or injured by ETA’s violent acts in the weeks to come. I took this photo last year in Madrid on the Gran Via. The people are out supporting the PSOE the week before presidential elections.

ETA Blammed For Bomb in Madrid

It hasn’t taken a long time for Basque seperatists ETA to respond to the banning of two pro-independence Basque parties. After the Spanish Supreme Court banned Askatasuna and Democracia 3 Millones (Democracy Three Million) from the regional elections on March 1, terrorist group ETA filled a van with explosives and blew it up in northern Madrid last Monday around 9 a.m. local time.

The blast left a one meter deep crater, damaged vehicles and windows but there have been no reports of any major injuries. Surprisingly, earlier that morning The Red Cross received a warning call at 7:37 a.m. and in the name of ETA telling the whereabouts of the bomb and around what time it would go off. It is important to add that because of this warning a number of people could have been saved by this call. ETA still is responsible for these violent acts but it almost seems that they are trying to make some attempt to gaining secession without killing. Or maybe it was just luck that no one died, this attack almost falls on the exact date four years ago on February 4, 2005 when numerous people were injured after ETA put a bomb in the same neighborhood that was hit last Monday.

This neighborhood is also home to the Spanish construction firm Ferrovial, the owners of BAA and also responsible for building a high-speed train link in the Basque region that connects it with the rest of Spain and France. The bomb went off near Ferrovial’s buildings and was an attempt to frighten them as well as letting the supreme court know that ETA is not happy with the banning of Askatasuna and Democracia 3 Millones. It looks likes ETA was very serious when then vowed to keep fighting after the group’s 50th anniversary celebrated on January 30. But it also seems that the Spanish government isn’t ready to give in either, Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said, "What ETA did this morning ratifies the Supreme Court decision last night". With both sides not willing to give in it could mean a dangerous future for the people of Spain. ETA has already been blamed for 825 deaths in its 50 year campagin and who knows how high that number will go up in the next few months.

And to really show how unhappy the Basque people are, yesterday five were arrested in Bilbao where police dealt with people blocking roads and starting fires in protest of the two parties being banned.

The Basque Country and ETA

In the northern parts of Spain and southwest of France you will find the Spanish state País Vasco or Basque Country. This region is home to one of the most dangerous terrorist groups in Europe, Euskadi Ta Askatasuna or more commonly known as ETA. The goal of this very violent and proud group is to gain Independence and become its own nation. The goal will not be completed until total Independence is gained and ETA's members will do anything to achieve that goal. ETA when written in full means Basque Homeland and Freedom. This is something taken very serious by a number of people in this region. It is here that the Basque language (unlike other languages like Cataln spoken in Catalonia, Spain the Basque language is not a romance language and is very different from spanish) is spoken with pride and some locals even go as far as crossing out road signs in Spanish and only writting them in Basque. But why does the Basque Country need to be its own nation? Why can't the live as a state inside the nation of Spain? Some may say it is because of the suppression that the Basque have felt from both Spanish and French governments. Especially during the Franco regime the Basque people felt this suppression with efforts to stop Basque nationalism and efforts to stop people from speaking Basque. From all of this ETA was formed in 1959. It started out as locals trying to perserve its culture and then became a group demanding Basque independence. Now ETA had become very powerful and even more dangerous than ever. Just recently celebrating its 50th anniversary ETA let the world know that they aren't going anywhere. On Jan. 30th the group vowed to keep on fighting and that the demand for independence was stronger than it was when it started (Lawrence).