By Alex Ward PUBLISHED: 22:47 EST, 28 October 2012 | UPDATED: 04:09 EST, 29 October 2012 A top leader of the Basque separatist group ETA has been arrested in an anti-terror operation in France. Izaskun Lesaka, 37, who is said to be responsible for the terrorist group’s arms and explosives caches and another suspected ETA member, Joseba Iturbide Ochoteco, 35, were arrested in the early hours of Sundday by elite French police in a hotel in Macon, France, Spain’s Interior Ministry said in a statement. The suspects, both armed, were tracked down and arrested by a special operations tactical unit of the French National Police in close collaboration with Spanish counterparts.
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ETA leader Izaskun Lesaka was arrested by elite French police
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Joseba Iturbide Ochoteco, a suspected member of the terrorist group, was also arrested
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The group's numbers have declined after many arrests made in recent years
Wave of arrests: Police at the scene of the arrests that come after @placeholder's numbers have been decimated by arrests in Spain, France and other countries in recent years