Madrid  - French police Wednesday detained two suspected members of the militant Basque separatist group ETA, Spanish police sources said.

The two were captured during a routine police check as they were cycling near Tarascon-sur-Ariege in the south of the country. They were armed with a pistol and a revolver.

The suspects had documents related to ETA in their bags, the sources said. They also carried fake identity documents.

One of the detainees was identified as Ugaitz Astiz Arangoa, a fugitive belonging to the Donosti complex which is regarded as one of the main parts of ETA's military structure.

The identity of the other detainee was not immediately known.

ETA was increasingly using bicycles when crossing the border into Spain to avoid attracting the attention of police, reports said.

ETA, which has killed more than 800 people in its campaign for a sovereign Basque state carved out of northern Spain and southern France, has long had a part of its infrastructure based in France.

ETA has been listed as a terrorist organization by the European Union and the United States. (dpa)