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Car bomb explodes in Madrid, one killed

MADRID: A car exploded in Madrid early on Friday, a police spokeswoman said. Radio SER reported one person had been killed and several injured. The police spokeswoman could not immediately confirm any casualties.

Spain has been on tenterhooks, fearing an imminent attack by Basque separatist group ETA, since ETA lifted a 14-month truce in November.

Civil Guards intercepted two vans loaded with almost two tonnes of explosive on their way to Madrid in December and arrested the driver of one of them.

The explosion happened in a southeastern part of the city where there are a number of military buildings, SER radio reported.

ETA has usually attacked political and military targets in its 31-year-old campaign for an independent Basque state.

One police officer was killed and at least one person was wounded on Friday in a shootout that erupted near the scene of a car bomb attack in Madrid blamed on the Basque separatist group ETA, state television reported.

The gun battle occurred around two hours after a car bomb exploded outside a school, killing one man, believed to be an army officer, the television said.-Reuters