Spanish police and Europol arrested three suspected members of the Base, a banned neo-Nazi terrorist group, in Castellón, eastern Spain. Their American leader, Rinaldo Nazzaro, now living in Russia, called the arrests “another example of political persecution” in a message to the Guardian. He said the arrests justify “our resistance to its hegemonic rule by any means necessary.” The Base is known for promoting extreme violence and armed insurgency. Experts were shocked at the Spanish cell’s level of equipment and organization. Joshua Fisher-Birch, a terrorism expert, said the cell had its own public Telegram channel with weapons training posts and recruitment calls. The group has claimed attacks in Ukraine, including a July assassination of a Ukrainian officer. Last week, a Base member in Luxembourg was jailed for planning a mass attack at a Eurovision contest. In Spain, the Base supported its Ukraine operations and pushed for creating protected white communities. Their Telegram posts showed weapons, propaganda, and praised figures like Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber. They urged “calculated ruthlessness” against enemies. Europol revealed a large weapons cache seized from the cell, including firearms, a machine pistol, neo-Nazi items, cash, knives, and shirts with Kaczynski’s and Hitler’s images. The Spanish cell’s leader was reportedly in contact with Nazzaro. Fisher-Birch called the cell’s links to Russian sabotage operations “incredibly concerning.” Nazzaro, believed to live in St Petersburg, is suspected of working with Russian intelligence, though he denies any ties. The group may have offered money to kill Ukrainian figures, hinting at Kremlin cooperation. The Base remains active in the US too, despite past FBI probes and arrests. Steven Rai from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue noted the Spanish case closely mirrors US patterns where members train paramilitarily and plan violence. Rai warned, “It is important that law enforcement agencies, platforms, and other stakeholders remain vigilant about the broader threat posed by the Base’s underlying ideology and the online ecosystem which has crystallized around it.” Spanish police and Europol did not comment on possible links between the Base and Russian intelligence activities in Europe.