Small device explodes on Spain beach

A device exploded on a beach near the southern Spanish city of Malaga after a bomb warning, Spain's Interior Ministry said on Sunday, adding that police cleared the area before the blast and no one was hurt.

"A small device exploded on Guadalmar beach soon after 1 p.m. without causing damage. A call was received warning that a device had been planted. It was of little power," a ministry spokesman said.

The website of El Mundo newspaper quoted security sources as saying a person claiming to speak on behalf of Basque separatist rebels ETA had phoned firefighters at nearby Benalmadena warning that a bomb had been planted on the beach.

El Mundo reported the caller as saying another two devices had been planted in the region, one at a Benalmadena's marina and another on the Costa del Sol motorway between Malaga and Torremolinos.

Last month ETA exploded four small bombs at popular seaside resorts in the north of the country, marking the start of its usual summer bombing campaign against holiday resorts as part of the group's four-decade campaign for an independent Basque state.