Police arrest two ETA suspects

Basque regional police today arrested two suspected members of the armed Basque separatist group Eta, authorities said.

The arrests were the first following the permanent cease-fire announced by the armed group last week.

The two men, who were not immediately identified, are accused for links to the group in relation to a shootout with two policemen in 2003.

They were detained in the northern Basque city of Bilbao, Spain’s Interior Ministry said.

Eta, blamed for more than 800 killings since launching a campaign for Basque independence in 1968, announced a permanent cease-fire last Wednesday.

It took effect at midnight on Thursday.

Zapatero said on Friday that if the government confirms that the cease-fire is authentic, he will push for peace talks in a matter of months.