What happened

Two suspects, a 34-year-old man and a 22-year-old woman, went to the police station in Irún, in the Basque Country, on Saturday, 17 October, accompanied by a lawyer, and were arrested there. Both had been on the Ertzaintza's radar since 26 September, when officers stopped three people at a checkpoint in Eskoriatza, in Gipuzkoa. According to the Basque government's security department, the material seized included information on members of the security forces and the possible location of a cache of what were presumed to be weapons and explosives. The three people were not detained at that stage, and the Ertzaintza opened an investigation in coordination with the Audiencia Nacional. The investigation intensified in the days before the two suspects surrendered voluntarily. A third person who was with them, an Irish national, was reported by sources cited in the coverage to be linked to IRA dissidents.

Court order and charges

Investigating judge Antonio Piña of the Audiencia Nacional ordered both suspects held in provisional prison on Tuesday, 20 October, after they had testified and answered only questions from their own defence. The measure followed a request from prosecutor Vicente González Mota. Prosecutors allege membership of a terrorist organisation or group, an attack on public peace, and possession and manufacture of explosives and weapons. Other reports list further offences, including serious resistance to authority, public disorder and the storage of arms. Remand in custody is a pretrial measure, and no trial or verdict has been reported.

The group behind the suspects

Security forces have reportedly monitored for at least two years the links between IRA dissidents and the radical abertzale left, according to police sources cited by ABC. The suspects are linked to Jardun Koordinadora, a radical dissident group on the fringes of the official abertzale left that EH Bildu represents. Police sources put the group at between 200 and 300 members, and the group has been involved in episodes of political violence in recent years in the Basque Country and Navarre. Its statement issued over the weekend did not deny that the two arrested people belonged to its ranks, but it distanced the group from the offences they are accused of.

Victims' groups and the leaked data

The association AVT and the Asociación Unificada de Guardias Civiles (AUGC) have joined the case as popular accusations. AUGC, described in the coverage as the largest association of Guardia Civil members, said terrorism has not ended and urged the government not to close the chapter prematurely. La Razón reports that both groups are assessing the leaked data on active Guardia Civil officers. In a statement, AVT said:

“One cannot lower the guard against any threat.”

La Vanguardia noted that the court decision came on the 15th anniversary of ETA's definitive end of violence. According to La Razón, the next step in the case is a decision by the judicial bodies.