From: awalker@cbnewse.cb.att.com (andrew.j.walker)
Subject: article (3of3) of interest
Organization: AT&T
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 1992 11:34:43 GMT


	BARCELONA, Spain (UPI) -- The final pieces in a massive air, land and
sea security mission to keep the Olympic Games free from terrorist
attack were put into place Wednesday.
	Almost every street corner in this city now appears to be guarded by
blue uniformed police officers wearing bulky bullet-proof jackets and
carrying pump-action shotguns or machine guns.
	``The spectators ought to feel happy because they will feel protected
against the possibility of attack,'' said Spanish Interior Minister Jose
Corcuera.
	About 45,000 police and soldiers are spread throughout the city and a
ring of steel has been thrown around the main Olympic area of Montjuic
which is guarded by armored vehicles.
	The sound of police helicopters clattering around the city has become
almost constant and a huge Zeppelin spends the day circling slowly over
the rooftops.
	Officials at the Civil Government of Barcelona, which has ultimate
responsibility for security, believe that many of the worst threats to
the Games have diminished in recent months.
	Top of the list of these was Basque separatist guerillas from the ETA
(Basque Homeland and Liberty) organization, which has killed more than
750 people in a 20-year fight for independence for its region in
northwest Spain.
	An ETA commando which killed six people in the city in January and
February is believed to have fled to France after one member was
captured in March. The gang specialized in daylight shootings of police
officers and armed forces personnel.
	The arrests in March and April of the ETA's leadership in raids
conducted by French police is believed to have seriously weakened the
organization.
	Further arrests were carried out among ETA members in Uruguay.
	``We do not think ETA is such a threat now,'' the Civil Governor's
security spokesman Eladio Jareno said. ``But obviously we cannot promise
anything.''
	A series of arrests earlier this month also is believed to have taken
the sting out of militant Catalan separatist group Terra Lliure -- which
has carried out bomb attacks on government buildings in recent years.
	But mindful of the killing of Israeli athletes during the Munich
Olympics of 1972, Jareno says that special attention will be given to
members of certain teams.
	``We are treating some countries as special cases. Apart from Israel
and certain Arab countries, we are also including Bosnia and the other
former Yugoslav states in this category,'' he explained.
	A 12-mile exclusion zone has been declared around the city port and
Olympic sailing area -- with protection being provided by anti-submarine
nets, a mini-submarine and 12 naval vessels.
	A total of 15,000 police have been drafted in from outside the city --
leading to arguments with police unions over the conditions in which
they have to live.
	Despite the heavy security presence, police report an increase in the
number of petty crimes in the city as criminals from around Spain and
the rest of Europe come to ``work'' the Olympics.
	Gangs discovered in recent weeks include an Italian group which hoped
to steal luxury cars and drive them to Germany and a South American band
dedicated to breaking into apartments and hotels.
	One of the first victims of the Olympic crooks was Swiss artist Hans
Erni who was mugged earlier this week shortly after leaving a ceremony
in which he was awarded a medal for his contributions to Olympic art.
	Police have coordinated their activities with the security services
of 25 other countries, some of which will be bringing their own agents
to protect the estimated 40 heads of state who are expected at the
Games.
	``They have said that they are pretty content with the organization,''
Jareno said.
	The nerve center of Olympic security will be a ``bunker'' to which
Civil Governor Ferran Cardenal will go if any major security problem
arises.
	In off-the-record briefings to journalists, Cardenal has expressed
his belief that the Games will pass off peacefully -- but he carries a
serious expression on his face.
	In a Games without serious financial or political problems, he knows
that only one thing can spoil the party.