Canary Islands Independence Movement

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The Canary Islands Independence Movement (CIIM), also known as the Movement for the Independence and Autonomy of the Canaries Archipelago, is a defunct terrorist organization that bombed airports to force the Spanish government to create an autonomous state in the Canary Islands. The organization, based in Algeria and Spain, ceased activity after the Spanish government created the autonomous Canaries Archipelago in 1982.^[1]

At its height the CIIM had no more than 100 members.^[1]

[edit] Airport bombings

CIIM bombed the offices of South African Airways in Las Palmas on 3 January 1977, its first attack. CIIM terrorists bombed a florist shop in Las Palmas Airport on 27 March 1977, seriously injuring eight people. Members then threatened to explode a second bomb in the airport, forcing police to shut down air traffic while they searched for the bomb. The sudden re-routing of all flights to the Los Rodeos Airport, in addition to various other factors, was blamed for Los Rodeos disaster when two Boeing 747 airliners collided resulting in the death of 583 people.^[1]

[edit] References