Police Find Explosives In Basque Separatist Apartment

Police found grenades and other explosives in an apartment hours after it was abandoned by Basque separatists, authorities said Thursday.

Neighbors alerted police after a morning explosion at the apartment.

Police said they found 16 grenades and more than 65 pounds of explosives at the apartment, as well as timers, detonators, cables and batteries.

Four suspected members of the armed separatist group ETA were seen rushing from the apartment following the blast, the Spanish news agency EFE reported.

The Basque Interior Department said police had ruled out any connection between the ETA members in the apartment and last weekend’s slaying of Miguel Angel Blanco, a 29-year-old city councilman with the ruling Popular Party.

Durango is located some 200 miles north of Madrid and is next to Blanco’s native town, Ermua.