ETA
ETA, which stands for Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (Basque for Basque Fatherland and Liberty or Basque Country and Liberty - the word is also Basque for "and") is a terrorist group seeking an independent socialist Basque state. Its symbol is a snake wrapped around an axe. Its motto is Bietan jarrai ("Keep on both").
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2 Tactics 3 Counterterrorism 4 Political issues 5 History 6 Other armed organizations acting in the Basque Country 7 External links |
The group aims to secure an independent Marxist state comprising the Basque-inhabited areas of Spain and France (Euskal Herria). This region includes the Spanish provinces of Vizcaya (Biscay), Guipuzcoa, Alava and Navarre (often referred to collectively as the Basque Country) and the French areas of Lower Navarre, Labourd (Lapurdi) and Soule (Zuberoa), all located in southwestern France in the dÃÂépartement of PyrÃÂénÃÂées-Atlantiques.
Because of its allegiance to Marxist ideas, ETA has in the past been sponsored by communist regimes such as Cuba, as well as by Libya and Lebanon, and some of its members have found "political" asylum in Mexico and Venezuela. It has had links with other militant left-wing movements in Europe and elsewhere, such as the IRA.
The ETA group operates mainly in Spain and was founded in 1959, positioning itself as a resistance movement to General Franco's often violent suppression of the Basques.
It often uses what has been called terrorist tactics. They sometimes attack civilian targets, but focus at "military" targets. However included in what ETA sees as military targets are not only the army, but police and politicians. Before bombings ETA call in so that people can be evacuated, but sometimes the call gives wrong information so that also police and explosives experts get injured or killed. It employs bombings and assassinations, mainly aimed against politicians opposed to Basque nationalism, journalists, intellectuals, businessmen and the Guardia Civil and other Spanish and Basque security forces. It has killed an estimated 800 people since the 1960s. Its activities have mostly been confined to Spain, particularly the Basque Country, Madrid, Barcelona and the tourist areas of the Mediterranean coast of Spain. Although it has not carried out attacks in France, ETA units have nonetheless been active there.
ETA finances its operations through kidnapping, extortion, robbery, arms trafficking and "taxes", as well as by money leaking from its political counterpart Batasuna It is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States and all EU countries, as of December 2001.
ETA has conducted many high-profile attacks over the years. Among the most significant have been:
Members of ETA have often taken refuge in southwestern France, especially the French Basque Country and Aquitaine. Although this used to be tolerated by the French government, especially during the Franco dictatorship when ETA members were often regarded as political refugees, in recent years the French have been extremely active against ETA. A number of ETA members have been captured on French soil and extradited to Spain to stand trial.
During the 1970s and the 1980s, ETA members and its suspected supporters had been the target of right-wing and state terrorism. Several ETA members were executed during the Franco era.
ETA's political wing is Batasuna, formerly known as Euskal Herritarrok and "Herri Batasuna", which generally receives about 10% of the vote in the Basque areas of Spain.
Batasuna's political status has been a very controversial issue. The Spanish Cortes (parliament) began the process of declaring the party illegal in August 2002, a move which was strongly disputed by many who felt that it was too draconian. Judge Baltasar GarzÃÂón suspended the activities of Batasuna in a parallel trial, investigating the relationship between Batasuna and ETA, and its headquarters were shut down by police. The Supreme Court of Spain finally declared Batasuna illegal on March 18, 2003. The court considered proven that Batasuna had several links with ETA and that it was, in fact, part of ETA. Batasuna was listed as a terrorist organization by the United States in May 2003 and by all EU countries in June 2003.
In Spain, all Members of Parliament not belonging to Batasuna or any of the independentist political parties are required to carry a permanent escort lest they should be attacked by ETA. This also extends to all Basque city councilors of non Basque Nationalist parties and several of the Basque Nationalist officials.
In 1968, Xabi Etxebarrieta, a member of ETA, shot dead a policeman which halted his car for a road check. He was soon killed by the Spanish police. Then ETA planned their first murder, MelitÃÂón Manzanas, a police officer and suspected torturer.
The ETA ideology was influenced by the Algerian independence and the decolonization movement.
In 1973, ETA set a bomb in Madrid against the car of admiral Luis Carrero Blanco, murdering this appointed successor of Francisco Franco and prime minister of Spain. Many in the Spanish opposition welcomed this blow against the dictatorship.
ETA was divided in ETA military and ETA political-military.
After the democratization (1975-1978) of Spain, the majority of ETA (pm) accepted the amnesty and joined the democratic process in the Euskadiko Ezkerra ("Left Wing of the Basque Country") party. Dissenters joined ETA (m), which continued fighting Spain.
From 1986 to 1987 a government-supported, "counter-terrorist" illegal group, the GAL, killed or kidnapped several suspected ETA militants and some innocent people. After this date, no major cases of foul play on part of the Spanish government have been proven, although ETA supporters routinely claim human rights violations and torture by security forces.
ETA has failed in killing king Juan Carlos I of Spain in Majorca and conservative leader JosÃÂé MarÃÂÃÂa Aznar in Madrid.
To fight ETA, the Spanish state issued an counter-terrorist law, relaying suspected terrorist to the specialized tribunal Audiencia Nacional in Madrid. Suspected terrorists are subject to a habeas corpus term longer than the rest of suspects. ETA prisoners are deliberately dispersed across Spain and France, some as far from their families as in the Salto del Negro prison in the Canary Islands. The governments justify this as a means to break the cohesion of the group.
The Colombian government accuses Irish and Basque citizens in Colombia of being IRA and ETA members teaching terrorist techniques to FMLN guerrilla.
ETA is currently suspected in a series of ten train bombings which targeted three locations along Madrid's subway lines on the morning of March 11, 2004, killing 198 persons. However, their authorship of this attack, the largest European terror incident in terms of lives lost since the 1988 Pan Am flight 103 flight bombing, has not yet been conclusively determined.
Goals
Tactics
Attacks
Counterterrorism
Political issues
History
ETA was founded by young nationalists unsatisfied by the PNV party. For ten years, they theorized and protested by destroying infrastructure and Spanish symbols and hanging forbidden Basque flags.Other armed organizations acting in the Basque Country
External links