ETA still wants independent Basque nation after disarming

Published April 17, 2017

Basque separatist group ETA says it has not abandoned its goal of an independent Basque state along the French-Spanish border despite giving up its arms.

In a communique Sunday in the Basque newspaper Gara, ETA said disarmament "wasn't going to be a bargaining chip, but rather a way to show the intransigence of the (Spanish and French) states and to further the independence movement."

Two weeks ago ETA gave French authorities a list of eight caches where police found weapons, ammunition and explosives in a historic step toward disarmament.

Inactive for over five years, the ETA killed 829 people, mostly in Spain, in a 43-year campaign for independence. Spain and France have both demanded it disband.

ETA made no mention of dissolving in Sunday's communique, its first since handing over its weapons.

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