A Spanish judge has issued an international arrest warrant for a Basque separatist militant, last reported to be in Ireland.
The warrant was issued after Jose Ignacio 'Inaki' de Juana Chaos, who was released from prison in August and is known to have been visiting Ireland, failed to appear in court to testify in a case brought against him for praising terrorism.
The high court judge decided to ignore a request lodged on his behalf by a Northern Irish law firm asking for his court appearance to be postponed.
A hunger strike by De Juana Chaos put pressure on peace talks between the Spanish government and ETA in the months before a rebel car bombing at Madrid airport ended the negotiations in December 2006.
The former leader of ETA's 'Madrid commando' spent 21 years in prison for crimes including 25 killings, among them the assassination of a rear admiral and the killing of 12 police officers with a car bomb.
He was summoned to testify after a letter from him was read out at a Basque separatist meeting in San Sebastian.
ETA has killed more than 800 people in four decades of armed struggle for the independence of ancient Basque territories in Spain and France.
Polls indicate it is supported by a relatively small minority of Basques.
