Press freedom groups have condemned the bombing of Basque public broadcaster EiTB by Basque armed separatist group ETA in the northern city of Bilbao on December 31 last.
A large explosive charge left in a truck parked outside the EiTB building went off at 11:05 a.m., shattering windows but causing no injuries. An anonymous caller identifying himself as an ETA member warned the authorities in advance about the bomb, and the building was evacuated before it went off.
“By setting off this unusually powerful bomb, ETA is trying to show that the latest arrests of its members have not brought it to its knees,” Paris-based Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) said. “We firmly condemn this attempt to intimidate the public and journalists in the Basque county by a minority that wants to impose its will by force.”
Many other news media, including the TV station Antena 3, radio Onda Cero and national daily El Mundo, have offices in the EiTB building. ETA often targets news media and journalists. Some 40 journalists continue to receive police protection because of the threats they have received from ETA, which is on the RSF list of “Predators of Press Freedom.”
"Just on the day when the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has announced how journalism has suffered from violence around the world this year, the Basque terrorists of ETA have shown their contempt for media and free expression," said Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary. "We strongly support the condemnation of this attack by our Spanish colleagues," added White. "They are determined to carry on reporting freely despite these threats."
