2 puppeteers held in Spain for ‘praising’ terrorism

MADRID, Spain — A Spanish court has ordered the detention of two puppeteers for allegedly praising terrorism during a performance in Madrid.

In a statement by Judge Ismael Moreno, the court says puppeteers Alfonso Lazaro de la Fuente and Raul Garcia Perez, who worked for the “Puppets from Below” company, had staged a play featuring the “hanging of an effigy of a judge, the stabbing of a nun with a crucifix and several police beatings.” It also said the puppets held up a sign saying “Up with ETA,” a reference to the banned Basque separatist group.

The show had been commissioned as part of Madrid’s Carnival celebrations.

Praising terrorism has been a crime in Spain since 1995. ETA is considered a terrorist organization by Spain, the U.S. and the European Union.