A van that exploded in northeastern Spain was detonated by members of the Basque separatist group ETA when they realized police were on their trail, Spain's Interior Ministry said Monday.ETA had planned to use the van in an attack but were thwarted when police in the town of Les Coves de Vinroma became suspicious, said an Interior Ministry spokesman, under customary condition of anonymity.
He said the van had been stolen by alleged ETA members who, feeling cornered by police, blew the van up Sunday in an olive grove on the outskirts of town. No one was hurt. ''The car was going to be used very soon,'' the spokesman said. ''It had a large quantity of explosives.''
The target of the planned bombing was unknown, he said. The owners of the van, Spanish nationals who were on vacation in the area, had been kidnapped Friday and were released on Monday in France.
On Friday, a van packed with an estimated 80-100 kilograms (175-220 pounds) of explosives blew up in Spain's northern Basque region outside a a police station, destroying cars, shattering windows and slightly injuring two policemen. Authorities said it was ETA's first serious attack since it called off a cease-fire in June.
Also Monday, Spanish anti-terrorism experts were to visit Portugal to investigate the latest bombing and share information with Portuguese counterparts. They want to determine whether ETA has set up bases in southern Portugal.
| The answer seems to be Yes. Spain & Portugal have announced a joint effort against ETA: |
''There is a possibility that ETA might have a small infrastructure in southern Portugal, probably in the Algarve,'' Rubalcaba said.
A van packed with an estimated 80-100 kilograms (180-220 pounds) of explosives blew up outside Durango's police station, and a second car with Portuguese license plates was used by suspected separatists as a getaway.
It was the second incident leading Spanish officials to suspect a link with Portugal. In June, an abandoned car holding explosive material and a bomb-making manual in the Basque language was found on a road near the town of Ayamonte, near the border with Portugal. Police said the car had been rented in Lisbon, and likely was abandoned after its driver was alerted to a police checkpoint ahead.
Spanish anti-terrorism experts are to visit Portugal on Monday to investigate the latest bombing and share information with Portuguese counterparts to determine whether there were ETA operations in Portugal. Spain and Portugal may soon sign an anti-terrorist accord to expand police cooperation, Rubalcaba said.
ETA has often used France as a base, and on Saturday a backpack filled with explosives was found in Souraide _ near the Spanish border in the French Basque country _ which could have been linked with the armed separatist group, French police officials said.
