Eta terror suspects among 18 held in raids

Two of Spain's most wanted alleged terrorists and at least 16 other suspected members of the armed Basque separatist group Eta have been arrested in police raids in France.

Mikel Albizu Iriarte, the suspected leader of Eta's political wing since 1993, and his partner, Soledad Iparraguirre, were among those held near Pau in south-western France.

Officials said the operation was possibly the most significant blow against ETA in years. Spanish authorities say the arrests have probably saved dozens, if not hundreds, of lives.

"The operation is very important," said Spanish interior minister José ntonio Alonso. "No fewer than seven homes have been searched and police have seized plenty of documentation, weapons and explosives, in important quantities.

"The arrests are part of an excellent collaboration between Spain and France in anti-terrorism policies," he added. His ministry put the number of suspects in custody at 21. The discrepancy with the French figure of 18 could not immediately be explained.

Some 140 police agents took part in the raids. They seized rocket-launchers, assault rifles, munitions, explosives, cash and documents, French authorities said.

All but one of the 16 other suspected Eta members were arrested in towns between Pau and Bayonne in southwest France yesterday.

The other suspect, arrested in the northern Spanish city of Burgos, is thought to have planted bombs for Eta at power installations in September. His wife was among those detained in France. Iriarte and Iparraguirre, both aged 43, were discovered with their son. They had been on the run since

1993.

They had false papers and refused to answer questions but were identified by their fingerprints.

Eta, which demands an independent Basque state, has carried out bombings and assassinations in Spain since the Sixties. The group is classified as a terrorist organisation by the European Union and the US. It has been blamed for more than 800 deaths. Eta militants have long crossed into peaceful Basque provinces of south-west France to take refuge or make plans. French and Spanish authorities co-operate to hunt them down.

Mikel Albizu, who uses the alias Mikel Antza, is thought to have taken over as a leader after police devastated Eta in 1992 by arresting most of its senior members.

He was allegedly part of the group's executive committee and made the group's decisions together with Ignacio Gracia Arregui, a former leader of the military wing, arrested in September 2000 in France.

Albizu escaped another police raid last April that netted an Eta logistics chief, Feliz Ignacio Esparza.

Albizu's partner Iparraguirre, who uses the alias "Amboto", is considered one of the leading female members.

She comes from a family of Eta militants and became active after her boyfriend was killed in a police raid when she was 20. She allegedly participated in dozens of attacks which killed 15 people.