Two suspected Eta members arrested in France

Two suspected members of Basque separatist group Eta were today arrested in southern France.

They were the first arrests since a massive car bombing in Madrid blamed on the group, the Spanish interior ministry said.

One of the detainees, identified as Asier Larrinaga Rodriguez, is linked to an arms cache discovered on December 23 in the Basque town of Amorebieta in northern Spain and to explosives found last week in the same area, the ministry said in a statement.

Spain is still trying to identify the second person arrested, it said.

The arrests were made near the French town of Ascain.

The government has blamed Eta for a huge car bombing on December 30 at Madrid Airport that killed two men and marked the end of a nine-month ceasefire by the militant group.

The government responded by scrapping plans for negotiations with Eta.