Pat Dollard

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MADRID (Reuters) – Islamic radicals may have been planning an attack in Barcelona, Spain’s Interior Minister Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba said, after police found explosive materials and arrested those accused of involvement early on Saturday.

Rubalcaba told a news conference civil guard police found bomb-making materials during raids on five addresses and arrested 12 Pakistanis and two Indians after receiving information from its own and other European intelligence agencies in recent days.

Rubalcaba said Saturday’s raids were distinct from a number of operations against Islamic militants in recent years which were largely against groups that sought to finance radical groups or recruit members to fight.

“Here we are looking at something different: a well-organized group who were going beyond ideological radicalism to acquiring materials to make explosives and therefore eventually to carry out violent attacks,” he said.

He said a range of bomb-making materials had been found including four timers. Computers were also seized in the raid which took place at 00.30 a.m.(6:30 p.m. EDT.)

Spain’s Interior Ministry regards Islamic militants, rather than armed Basque separatists ETA, as Spain’s greatest security threat and has significantly beefed up surveillance of mosques and employed more Arabic translators in the last four years.

That followed Europe’s deadliest Islamist attack in March 2004 in which four Madrid trains were bombed, killing 191 commuters and injured a further 1,800.

In September 2004, 11 Pakistanis were arrested in Barcelona, accused of planning attacks in the port city. All were cleared, although three were jailed last year after raising money destined for Muslim militants while two others were found guilty of forging documents.