News

Spanish police arrested 10 members of the banned Basque political party Batasuna, including its leader, in an operation Spain''s interior minister described Wednesday as a crackdown on those who support violence.

Arnaldo Otegi and nine other top Batasuna members were arrested late Tuesday on suspicion they were forming a new group under the instructions of the armed organization ETA, minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said.

"As long as there is violence, no political party which defends, supports or justifies it will be allowed in Spain," said Rubalcaba. "And the police will move to stop it systematically."

Rubalcaba said police had been watching the group for the past six months. The arrests, carried out in three northern towns, were ordered by top anti-terror Judge Baltasar Garzon late Tuesday.

Batasuna was outlawed by the Supreme Court in 2003 for its links to ETA. The law, specially drawn up to deal with Basque groups, insists all parties must denounce violence.

Rubalcaba denied suggestions that people were being persecuted for their political ideas and pointed out that the law has been backed by Spain''s top courts as well as the European Court of Human Rights.

Batasuna has undergone several name changes since the 1970s, including Herri Batasuna and Euskal Herritarrok. Long considered the political wing of ETA, it used to garner about 8 percent of the vote in Basque elections.

Otegi, 51, was released from jail last year after serving 15 months for defending terrorism. He is implicated in four investigations involving similar charges.