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The group of 3 suspected ''legal'' members of ETA arrested on Tuesday morning by Spanish police in Guipúzcoa were prepared for an attack but had still not begun activity.

"It was a group which had still not begun terrorist activity, but were in a position to begin to do so," confirmed Secretary of State Antonio Camacho during a press conference. He underlined that those arrested had everything in place in order to "act immediately".

He went on to stress that the operation carried out by police was of a "preventative nature" because it had allowed them to break up a terrorist cell that was in a position to act, thereby "avoiding pain and suffering" for citizens.

No participation in sabotage

Camancho indicated that various material for making explosives was found during the four search carried out in Usurbil, Astigarraga, Lasarte and Donostia-San Sebastián. However, he also pointed out that within the items seized during the operation, there were no materials required for making car-bombs like that used in the attack that killed police inspector Eduardo Puelles in Bilbao last Friday.

Asked whether any of tose arrested may have participated in sabotaging the construction of the Basque Y (the high-speed railway) the minister indicated that at this stage police have "no proof" that links them with these attacks.

Director General of the National Police and Civil Guard, Francisco Javier Velásquez Lopez, said he anticipated that "with the cooperation of police, the Civil Guard and Basque police, there will be many more operations of this kind."