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News desk RAMON Socías, the central government representative in the Balearics, yesterday sent a tranquilising message to residents, and said that following the chain of attacks by Basque separatist group ETA in Cantabria, the security forces are “working intensively to prevent ETA from destabilising the tourist sector.” Socias said that the islands, as a tourist area, were “very vigilant in this question”, and stressed that every week his department has a meeting with members of the security and police forces and Guardia Civil to analyse the situation.

He added that the meeting is also attended by members of the Royal Household's security team and that of the Moncloa, the residence of the Spanish Prime Minister, as Premier José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is currently holidaying in Minorca.

During the meeting, the experts review “possible threats” and also “revise the presence of people in the archipelago who could be related with terrorist movements,” either domestic or international.

Socias also stressed the numbers present in the islands of Guardia Civil, National Police, Spain's Central Intelligence office and the immediate intervention squads.

He added that people can be reassured at the moment, but stressed that everyone is “vigilant” as the possibility of an incident could not be ruled out, and a greater effort must be made during the summer months, in view of the attempts by ETA to “destabilise the tourist sector.” Security is always increased in summer, because of the presence of the Spanish royal family in Majorca.
The message came after a bomb went off in Llanes in Asturias on Sunday. The bomb was in a bag of rubbish by the entrance to the port, but nobody was injured and there was no material damage.

It was the fifth bomb exploded by ETA in eight days, three of them in Asturias (in Ribadesella and Gijon, where one person was injured).