AP: U.S. Adds Basque Group to 'Terror' List

[theapportioner]

An obvious point, but this goes to show how "political" the word terrorism has become. No doubt a favor to Spain for supporting the war, and gives Spain international carte blanche to do whatever the hell it wants to do with the Basque separatists...

~~~~~

U.S. Adds Basque Group to 'Terror' List

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has added the Spanish Basque nationalist party Batasuna and its predecessors to a list of 'terrorist' groups subject to financial sanctions, the State Department said on Wednesday.

Secretary of State Colin Powell (news - web sites), in an order signed on April 30, decreed that Batasuna, Euskal Herritarrok and Herri Batasuna were fronts for the separatist guerrilla group ETA, which is on the State Department's separate list of 'foreign terrorist organizations,' it said.

Euskal Herritarrok and Herri Batasuna were predecessors of Batasuna, which has been changing its name to circumvent legal restrictions on its activities. Basque separatists are now operating politically on the newly created platform AuB.

Powell signed the order one day before visiting Madrid last week. Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, who arrives in Washington later on Wednesday for talks with President Bush (news - web sites), has long urged action against the groups.

Aznar was an important ally of the United States in its abortive attempt to win explicit U.N. Security Council approval of the U.S. invasion of Iraq (news - web sites) in March.

The order signed by Powell applied specifically to Executive Order 13224, issued by Bush after the attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001. It prohibits financial transactions with organizations on the list.

But members of Batasuna, unless they happen to be known ETA members, would not be subject to the additional visa ban which comes with designation as a 'foreign terrorist organization.'

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said, 'This designation is based on substantial and credible information from a variety of sources that these entities were formed at ETA's direction and functioned as part of ETA.'

The three names are not yet on the list of 'foreign terrorist organizations' because of a time lag between the two designation processes, he said.

He said no decision had been made on the new entity AuB.

ETA, the acronym in Basque for Basque Fatherland and Liberty, has been on the list of 'foreign terrorist organizations' since 1997 and was added to the separate Executive Order 13224 list on Oct. 31, 2001.

[Jeanette X]

The Basque? What did the Basque ever do to anyone? What justification did they claim?

[AChimp]

IT'S WHAT THEY MIGHT DO!!!!!

[El Blanco]

Didn't they set a car bomb off at some summit a few years back?

I don't know what exactly they have done, but their rep is like the IRA with less American attention.

So its bad we are assisting Spain in stopping them because.....

Found a link about them

http://www.terrorism.com/modules.php...e=index&view=7

Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) ( back to list )
Group Status: None

Other Names:
Euzkadi Ta Askatasuna
Description:
Founded in 1959 with the aim of establishing an independent homeland based on Marxist principles in the northern Spanish Provinces of Vizcaya, Guipuzcoa, Alava, and Navarra, and the southwestern French Departments of Labourd, Basse-Navarra, and Soule.

Activities:
Primarily involved in bombings and assassinations of Spanish Government officials, security and military forces, politicians, and judicial figures. ETA finances its activities through kidnappings, robberies, and extortion. The group has killed more than 800 persons and injured hundreds of others since it began lethal attacks in the early 1960s. In November 1999, ETA broke its "unilateral and indefinite" cease-fire and began an assassination and bombing campaign that has killed 38 individuals and wounded scores more by the end of 2001.

Other Documented Attacks:
• 08/18/2001 - Salou, Spain
• 03/09/2001 - Hernani, Spain
• 02/11/2000 - Amorebieta,
• 01/27/2000 - Iturreta, Spain
• 01/27/2000 - Iturreta, Spain
• 07/20/1996 - Reus, Spain
• 07/20/1996 - Reus, Spain
• 12/16/1995 - Valencia, Spain
• 12/09/1995 - Bayonne, France
• 08/27/1995 - San Sebastian, Spain


Location/Area of Operation:
Operates primarily in the Basque autonomous regions of northern Spain and southwestern France, but also has bombed Spanish and French interests elsewhere.

Strength:
Unknown; may have hundreds of members, plus supporters.

External Aid:
Has received training at various times in the past in Libya, Lebanon, and Nicaragua. Some ETA members allegedly have received sanctuary in Cuba while others reside in South America.

[theapportioner]

Point is, designating organizations as 'terrorist' is arbitrary and political. The US government didn't do this earlier; only after Gulf War II did they make the designation. A favor to Spain, as it were.

[El Blanco]

So, we have sent Navy SEALs to exterminate the IRA? Cuz England was an even bigger help to us and always has been.


No, "terrorist" has a pretty technical defenition.

Right here.

[KevinTheOmnivore]

It looks like one of those definitions mentions "terrorism" as using terror as a political weapon.

Since we're being consistent, when do we send SEALS in to stop the IRA...?

[El Blanco]

Well, its not like SAS are a bunch of benchwarmers or anything. Anyway, it was just an off-the-cuff remark. The idea behind the terrorist group list is to prevent bussiness dealings with these groups.

I don't think my folks bought their corned beef and cabbage from Gerry Adams. Other than that, what do they have to offer us?

[KevinTheOmnivore]

Hasn't the IRA been funded from funds directly out of the U.S.....?

[mburbank]

It's absoluetly the timing. By set deffinitions there are lots of terrorist grpoups out there. When one that's been around and active quite some time suddenly gets the offical US seal of terrorism, regardless of who's party is in the whitehouse, you'd certainly want to look closely at the reasons.

I think if the Britts wanted us to intrude into the already dangerously muddy waters of their peace process and declare the IRA a terrorist group, removing any credability as a negotiator we've had up to now, the administration would almost certainly oblige.

[El Blanco]

Yes, there are plenty of terrorist groups out there that need our special attention. We can't get them all at once, so we take care of our friends first. Its how things work.

What is the problem? The timing? Better late than never.

[The_Rorschach]

The IRA are no more terrorists than the Kurds.

Let the US even TRY and interfere on those Tory bastard's side. Blood will be running through the streets, because any American seeing himself as Irish will be out protesting that in a heart beat. The Irish here have learned something those in the Old Country have yet to understand - Unity.

[El Blanco]

The Irish here have learned something those in the Old Country have yet to understand - Unity.

And thats part of the problem. Most Irish (at least the ones me and my family know) see the IRA as terrorists. As a matter of fact, complete independance in Northern Ireland may have more support than reunification.

And if the IRA has so much support, why won't the Ancient Order of Hibernians let Gerry Adams march on 5 Ave?

[KevinTheOmnivore]

The Irish-American support for the IRA seems to be more like American college kids who walk around with Che' T-shirts on. Seems cool and "radical," but lacking real conviction.

I could be totally wrong about that, but then that leads me to my previous question: How much funding does the IRA get from these here United States of America.....?

[El Blanco]

Officially, from the government? None. We won't even do bussiness with front companies.

Even private fund raisers are scrutinized. Honestly, most of the Irish immigrants I know, consider themselves Americans. they are proud of their heritage and still have strong connections back home, but they have lived and prospered here for several decades. That instills a kind of loyalty.