News

French police operating on the outskirts of Paris have arrested two alleged members of ETA, suspected of being part of the armed group''s information division, sources from within the antiterrorist operation have been cited.

According to the same sources, those arrested are Xabier Arruabarrena Carlos, 37, and Ohiana Garmendía Marín, 32. Seemingly, at the moment of capture both were unarmed.

Both were arrested at 6am in the area of Charenton-le-Pont, twenty kilometres southeast of the capital in the departement of Val-de-Marne, in a police operation in which the Spanish Civil Guard were also involved.

French police then search the apartment in which they were arrested.

Tried in contempt of court

Police have linked Xavier Arruabarrena to ETA''s Bizkaia terrorist cell which operated between 1999 and 2000. He was tried in France in contempt of court on 22nd October 2008 and sentenced to five years in jail for forming part of ETA''s reserve group.

Oihana Garmendia was also tried in France under the same circumstances on 15th June 2007 and sentenced to four years for recruiting for ETA in 2002.

The operation took place just 48 hours after the arrests in Usurbil and Astigarraga of three suspected members of ETA not yet on police records but who, according to the Interior Minstry, were "prepared for an attack".