Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said on Tuesday that Basque separatist group ETA was holding its ceasefire and extortion letters reported last week were sent by the group before the truce.

The extortion letters to businessmen in the northern Spanish region of Navarre were sent before the Basque Homeland and Freedom (ETA) announced the ceasefire on March 22, Zapatero told SER radio station.

All the information from security forces supported the argument that these letters were sent before the ceasefire, Zapatero said.

The prime minister said if the report that the ceasefire was real and credible continued, he would ask for parliament approval for face-to-face talks with ETA before this summer.

The Spanish authorities holds ETA responsible for the death of 850 people in bombings and shootings across the country since 1968.

Source: Xinhua