Spanish separatist group ETA likely to announce partial disarmament soon

Spanish separatist group ETA was likely to announce a partial disarmament in coming days, local media reported Tuesday. Anti-terrorist sources indicated the move could probably coincide with the scheduled arrival of Ram Manikkalingam, director of the International Verification Commission (IVC), in north Spain's Basque region Friday. ETA, which has killed more than 800 people over more than four decades, many as a result of car bombs, proclaimed a unilateral ceasefire two years ago, while the Spanish government insists on permanent dissolution and disarmament of the group. Relations between the two sides improved after the IVC, an independent group tasked with verifying the ceasefire, held negotiations with ETA leaders last summer in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. ETA prisoners have recently stated they accept the legitimacy of the Spanish legal system and have admitted responsibility for the deaths in their struggle for Basque independence. The group said in early February it would not delay making "significant contributions" to the peace process while insisting on a "Basque route" to end the conflict.