Basque militants jailed in France

The Basque militants are banned from living in France

Four members of the Basque militant group Eta have been jailed for 18 years each for the theft of 1.65 tons of dynamite in France in 2001.

Gregorio Vicario Setien, 47, Dolores Lopez-Resina, 54, Alberto Ilundain Iriarte, 43, and Frenchman Didier Aguerre,29, were convicted in Paris.

The court also banned Vicario, Lopez- Resina and Ilundain from living in France once their jail terms ended.

Charges against the three men included armed robbery and kidnap, say reports.

Lopez-Resina was convicted for her part as an accomplice. After the sentences were read out, the four stood up, raised their fists in the air and shouted Eta slogans.

Eta has been waging a violent campaign since 1968 to win Basque independence.

Arrests over the last few years have shown the group has had some logistical networks in France and a pool of supporters scattered across the borders of the Basque Country, in France and Spain, willing to engage in deadly missions.

The group said in a statement in June that it was willing to enter into talks with the Spanish government, but not to disarm. The Spanish government says it will talk to Eta, but only if it gives up violence.