Bombs mark start of Eta resort campaign

Published on Sunday 20 July 2008 22:01

FOUR bombs exploded yesterday at seaside resorts in Cantabria, northern Spain, following warning calls from Basque separatist group Eta.

There was also a small explosion without warning outside a Barclays bank near Bilbao.

A pregnant woman was treated for shock, while another woman was hurt by a flying stone.

The attacks marked the beginning of Eta's annual bombing campaign, which targets Spanish resorts as part of the group's struggle for an independent Basque state in northern Spain and southern France.

Spain's Socialist government condemned yesterday's attacks and reaffirmed its commitment to fighting the group. "The best way to get a long prison sentence in Spain at the moment is to join Eta," said the Spanish interior minister, Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba.

The first Cantabria bomb exploded on a seafront promenade in Laredo, one of northern Spain's most popular holiday destinations, damaging the walkway, breaking windows and sending smoke into the air, an official said. Holidaymakers had been cleared from the beach 45 minutes earlier.

The second bomb went off about 40 minutes later next to a lifeguard tower on the beach at Noja, about 19 miles from Laredo. It caused no damage.

Poor weather meant there were few people on the Noja beach but a police call to evacuate the area sent tourists running.

The third explosion was next to a Red Cross post in Laredo, close to where the first device went off, officials said.

A woman was slightly injured when she was hit by a rock sent flying by the fourth blast, on a golf course at Noja.

The earlier, small blast occurred outside a bank in the town of Getxo, damaging a cash dispenser and breaking windows.