A suspected leader of the Basque separatist organization ETA, who was allegedly behind the Madrid airport bombing, was detained in Bordeaux in southern France Tuesday.

- 21 / 05 / 2008 11:41

A suspected leader of the Basque separatist organization ETA, who was allegedly behind the Madrid airport bombing, was detained in Bordeaux in southern France Tuesday.

The Spanish government said Francisco Javier Lopez Pena, alias "Thierry," was one of the group's top leaders and was responsible for the December 2006 Madrid airport bombing which killed two people, according to the daily El Pais.

Participating in the peace process between ETA and the Spanish government, Thierry was also considered to have ordered the official end of the 14-month truce by ETA in June 2007.

Another three ETA members were also detained in the joint operation by French and Spanish police.

The Spanish government has clamped down on the group since the peace talks broke down, and dozens of ETA members have been arrested.

ETA has been waging a campaign for an independent Basque homeland in northern Spain and southwestern France since the 1960s which has led to some 850 deaths.

The European Union and the United States list it as a terrorist group.