The World Association of Newspapers has condemned an “outrageous and cowardly” explosives attack on the printing plant of the El Correo newspaper in the Basque region of Spain. The bombing has been blamed on the Basque terrorist organisation, ETA.

Timothy Balding, CEO of the Paris-based organisation, which represents 18,000 newspapers worldwide, condemned the attack early Sunday on the printing facilities in Zamudio, Spain, as “an attack on democracy itself.”

In a statement on behalf of WAN, he said:

“The World Association of Newspapers vigorously condemns the outrageous and cowardly attack on the printing plant of El Correo, a strong opponent of separatist violence in the Basque region of Spain.

“Free and independent media are a fundamental condition of democracy. The attack on El Correo thus represents an attack on democracy itself by terrorists who pursue their political agenda through violence, in the hope of intimidating the media and influencing news and information.

“This bombing in the heart of Europe is a reminder that attacks on freedom of the press do not occur solely under repressive regimes. The international community must remain vigilant against such threats and ensure that media professionals are free to carry out their duties without risk of being harassed and assaulted. We call on the police and security forces to do everything possible to apprehend the perpetrators.”

The attack on Sunday on the printing plant in Zamudio, near Bilbao, Spain, severely damaged the building. Fortunately, no one was hurt. The ETA, which is considered a terrorist organization by both the European Union and the United States, has made media and their staffs a priority target for their violence.

The attack was the fourth on El Correo, which hosted a “Media in Danger” conference in 2001 organised by WAN, the World Editors Forum, and the Spanish Newspaper Publishers Association (aede) to examine the violence and threats against journalists and media in the Basque region.