Laurence Dollimore
SPANISH police arrested 14 people on wednesday for allegedly glorifying terror acts in Facebook and Twitter messages.
The Interior Ministry said those arrested nationwide made repeated comments on fake social network profiles with large numbers of followers that ranged from “glorifying the terrorist organisations and the murders they carried out, to mocking the victims of terrorism.”
The groups praised the armed Basque separatist group ETA, Catalonia’s nationalist Free Land group and the shadowy far-left group GRAPO. None of whom have carried out armed attacks in recent years.
An Interior Ministry statement read: “This type of police operation is a blow to those who, whether or not they belong to terrorist organisations or their support structures, try to anonymously disparage victims and encourage the use of violence.”
The arrests occured in seven of Spain’s regions as part of a crackdown on online incitement to violence.
According to the statement, the effort has seen over 60 arrests since May 2014.
The most recent arrests were made in Barcelona (3), Murcia (2), Madrid (1), A Coruna (1), Pontevedra (1), Tarragona (1), Navarra (1), Valencia (1), Alicante (1), Granada (1).
ETA, whose forty year armed campaign for Basque independence left 829 people dead, declared an end to its armed activities in 2011, but the group has yet to formally disband or disarm.
GRAPO, which has been blamed for more the murders of more than 80 Spanish police and soldiers, has been relatively inactive since it was broken up in 2002.
I didn’t realize it was the Basques who blew up Atocha, attacked Paris, and bombed Brussels?
No, but they murdered over 800 people, I think that can best be described as terrorism, local council members, local police, people who serve their community,,, murdered for political ends,, that’s terrorism,,
Much social media is sociopathic and ought to be monitored as it is in France, Belgium, UK, USA, Germany, Spain, Canada and other EU and Western countries. Those ‘joking’ about atrocities clearly don’t have the moral compass to understand its horror and in their ignorance may be drawn into or used by others to support atrocities. When people don’t use self-agency to censor their own hateful behaviors, they ought not be surprised when some official agency does.
Seamus,
you obviously know nothing of the history of the peninsular or the actions of the Catholic mafia and their infamous organisation – the Inquisition used to steal land and other assets from the Euskadi.
Come to that as you are Irish, was the killing of the English invaders murderous or acts of liberation by freedom fighters – study the history of Europe’s first modern people and then commentate – it would make more sense would’nt it?
Stuart
Please, say me about facts that support your statement about the Inquisition.
Stuart, don’t bother in answering Anselmo, let him do his own homework. Perhaps a little help in reading the following link may help him.
“https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Inquisition”
Thanks Arnez:
I made my home work- the wikipedia paper seems be very good, but I haven´t found any evidence that support the statements of Stuart.