Washington, May 1 (Inditop) Spain remains an important transit and logistical base for terrorist organisations operating in western Europe, the US State Department has said in a report.

The Spanish government and the citizens “were concerned that their country remained a principal target of domestic terrorism and Islamic extremism”, the department noted in its annual report on terrorism released Thursday.

In 2008, the Basque terrorist organisation (ETA), which aims to set up an independent Basque state, killed four people in different attacks in the country.

However, Spain’s close cooperation with the French government (a neighbouring country) in anti-terrorism efforts has put considerable pressure on ETA, the department said.

Some 158 members of the ETA have been held in France and Spain as part of the anti-terror drive, it said.

In March 2004, bombings carried out by Islamic militants killed at least 200 people in Madrid, the worst terrorist attack in Spain’s history.