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| Europe |
| SAM launchers found among ETA armoury |
| 2004-10-05 |
| A ground-to-air missile used in shoulder launchers has been found in one of seven arms caches in southwest France uncovered in weekend raids against suspected members of Spain's armed Basque separatist group ETA, a French official said Tuesday. The missile was discovered along with a large amount of explosive material in a house under construction in the town of Urrugne, near the Spanish border. Seventeen people, including Mikel "Antza" Albizu Iriarte, ETA's political leader and chief theoretician, and his girlfriend, Soledad "Anboto" Iparragirre Genetxea, a suspected former military chief of the group, were arrested in the region Sunday in swoops by French anti-terrorist officers. Spanish officials said they arrested another four suspects on their side of the border the same day. Three of the suspects arrested in France were released Monday and the 14 others remain in custody, the French official said, adding that searches of the arms caches were continuing and would "take several days". The official said experts were examining the missile to determine where it was made and how it might have been acquired by ETA. According to the Spanish newspaper El Diario Vasco, the separatist group is believed to have several SAM-7 missiles able to blast low-flying aircraft out of the sky, according to documents found in previous raids. ETA has been waging a bloody campaign for an independent homeland in parts of northern Spain and southwestern France since 1959. It has been blamed for the deaths of 817 people in that time, according to a toll published Monday by Spain's El Pais daily. Both Spain and France hailed Sunday's raids against the group as a "historic" victory. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #4 According to the Spanish newspaper El Diario Vasco, the separatist group is believed to have several SAM-7 missiles able to blast low-flying aircraft out of the sky Bad guys seem to have a lot of these oldies, is the IR seeker battery cooled? It's seems like they're thousands of these suckers around but they're rarely used. Lack of skilled operators? Batteries? |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-10-05 3:44:01 PM |
| #3 Anonymoose You are as silly as badly informed. Serious anti-ETA cooperation between France and Spain began under Aznar. For France needing to appease ETA this is ridiculous: between the Basques of France the independentist movement has ever been very, very weak. Reasons are largely economic. During XIXth century Spanish Basque region became richer than the rest of Spain (mostly bacause Madrid's commercial policy favoured the Basque and Catalan industries). At one point a such Sabino Arana formulated an openly racist doctrine viewing the Basques as the Chosen people and not only other Spaniards but the rest of the world as unworthy of kissing their footpprints let alone befriend or marry them. But France's Basque region has never been an economic or industrial powerhouse. It lives mostly of agriculture, fishing and tourism. While French Basque region is not poor I doubt very much it is a neat contributor to the French Treasure. Thus the French Basques never got swollen heads. Ah, the French Basques have ever been quick to ask assistance from the French Navy and Coastguards when the Spanish Basques came to fish in _their zones_. |
| Posted by: JFM 2004-10-05 3:04:55 PM |
| #2 A "historic" reward given to the Spanish after they had recently decided to kiss zee French le bottom. The French intelligence service have prolly know about, and even encouraged the ETA for years, both to annoy the Dons and to bribe peace from the Basques in France. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2004-10-05 11:42:39 AM |
| #1 I still think the best thing these ETA members could do to "get even" is to publically claim responsiblity for the Madrid bombing. |
| Posted by: 2b 2004-10-05 11:40:33 AM |