SPAIN: ETA MARKS 50TH ANNIVERSARY IN DEADLY FASHION

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MADRID 000775 SIPDIS FOR EUR/WE'S ALEX MCKNIGHT AND STACIE ZERDECKI MARC NORMAN OF S/CT JANICE BELL OF INR PASS TO AARON ATRIDGE OF NCTC E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/31/2019 TAGS: PINR PINS PREL PTER SP SUBJECT: SPAIN: ETA MARKS 50TH ANNIVERSARY IN DEADLY FASHION REF: A. MADRID 707 ¶B. MADRID 499 ¶C. MADRID 272 ¶D. MADRID 139 ¶E. 08 MADRID 1231 ¶F. 08 MADRID 1055 MADRID 00000775 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: ADCM William H. Duncan for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY AND COMMENT: Spain is on maximum alert on July 31 - the 50th anniversary of the founding of the terrorist group Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) - after suffering two terrorist attacks in as many days. Authorities suspect ETA in both instances, although there have been no claims of responsibility. There were no AMCIT casualties in the attacks, which killed two and injured dozens. Embassy Madrid convened meetings of its Emergency Action Committee on July 29 and 31 (See Septel). While ETA has been weakened by numerous arrests (See Refs A - E),Post has long noted that the terrorist group retains the capacity to kill. It is neither unprecedented for there to be back-to-back attacks (See Ref F) nor for ETA to attack security services installations and personnel without warning (See Ref A). With that said, Miguel Angel Fernandez-Chico, head of the Spanish National Police (SNP) and Miguel Valverde, Commissioner General for the SNP Intelligence Directorate, on July 30 expressed concern to Post's Legat about that day's attack in particular - including how the explosives were brought to the island of Mallorca - and noted that the GOS was deploying significant personnel and resources to Mallorca to locate the culprits of the latest carbombing and to protect an influx of dignitaries attending a memorial service. Details on each attack follow. END SUMMARY AND COMMENT. //Two Dead in Mallorca Bombing// ¶2. (U) Two Guardia Civil (GC) officers died on July 30 when a bomb attached to the underside of their SUV patrol car exploded in a crowded tourist area across from GC headquarters in Palmanova, Mallorca. Authorities located another bomb under a second GC car, which was detonated in a controlled explosion. The U.S. Consular Agent in Palma has unconfirmed reports that the first bomb contained 20 kilos worth of explosives and the second contained 100 kilos. Some press reports claim that the July 30 bombing - the first time that ETA has killed anyone on the Balearic islands - was remotely detonated by persons within eyesight of the vehicle. Ramon Socias, the Spanish national government's Delegate to the Balearic Islands, on July 31 told reporters that the working hypothesis is that the culprits are still on Mallorca and that authorities, who do not discount the possibility of another attack, have implemented Operation "Jaula" (Cage) to closely scrutinize at ports or the airport all those who attempt to leave the island. ¶3. (U) In a show of political unity, Spanish President Zapatero and opposition leader Mariano Rajoy of the Popular Party on July 31 traveled together to Mallorca to pay their respects to the two fallen GC officers. Defense Minister Carme Chacon, Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba, Lehendakari (the President of the Basque Region; equivalent to a U.S. Governor) Patxi Lopez, and range of other national, regional and local politicians also will attend a memorial service. Spanish press reports indicate that, following the carbombing, there are no plans for King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia to alter their previously scheduled arrival in Mallorca on August 1. The ROYAL family traditionally spends its annual summer vacation at the Miravent Palace - a few miles from the carbomb site - where Princesses Elena and Cristina and their children already had arrived days ago. //Large-Scale Bombing of Civil Guard Barracks in Burgos// ¶4. (U) An unannounced vehicle-borne attack on the GC barracks in Burgos early in the morning of July 29 slightly injured 66 victims, 38 of whom - including two pregnant women and seven children - were taken to the hospital. Local authorities say it is a near-miracle that there were no fatalities in the attack, which may have used as many as 200 kilos of MADRID 00000775 002.2 OF 002 explosives. The blast devastated the 14-story barracks, damaged neighboring buildings and left a crater more than 20 feet wide and up to six feet deep. The vehicle apparently was parked nearly 50 feet away from the barracks, which normally houses 90 families, only 50 of which were in the building that night due to summer vacations. Press reports state that 118 people were evacuated from the site, which was on the list of targets identified by the ETA Vizcaya cell the GC dismantled last summer. ¶5. (U) Following a review of security camera footage, Spanish authorities determined that two men parked a Mercedes Benz Vito van outside the barracks roughly 14 hours before the detonation, and were driven away by a third person in a car that was later abandoned. The barracks' security personnel thought that the van looked suspicious and ran a check on the license plates, which matched those of a vehicle that belonged to a neighbor, so they let the van remain where it was. ETA, however, had meticulously studied the neighborhood and had stolen a vehicle matching the make, model and color of a local resident's van, even creating a fake license plate to duplicate the neighbor's. There are reports that the Mercedes van used in the bombing may have been one of three stolen vans that Spanish authorities in recent days publicly had identified by make and model to the media for possible use by ETA in imminent vehicle-borne attacks. Spanish press reports suggest that authorities learned this information following the arrest of a trio of ETA members in France on July 4 (See Ref A). Disturbed by ETA's sophisticated surveillance techniques, authorities are on the watch for the two other vehicles - a Renault Kangoo and a Citroen Berlingo, stolen in France but possibly already relocated to Spain. CHACON