Spanish govt denounces ETA's bombing attack

Spanish Interior Minister Jose Antonio Alonso on Saturday strongly condemned the separatist groupETA for carrying out a truck bombing in the northern city of Avila,describing the attack as a "terrorist act."

The blast, which occurred at 10 p.m. local time (2000 GMT) Saturday outside a warehouse some 5 km from the city center of Avila, destroyed three containers but left no casualties, the police said.

The bombing came about one hour after the police had twice received warning calls from ETA, telling the police about the timeand place of the explosion, the police added.

Alonso stressed that ETA can never realize its goals through terrorist activities and the Spanish government will not stop its crackdown on ETA until the terrorist group is eliminated.

ETA, an acronym for Basque Homeland and Freedom in Basque language, has been listed as a terrorist organization by Spain, the United States and the European Union.

The group has claimed responsibility for hundreds of deaths since 1968 when it started a campaign for an independent Basque state in northern Spain and southwestern France.

Source: Xinhua