| Youth Front | |
|---|---|
| Frente de la Juventud(in Spanish) | |
 | |
| Leader |
|
| Dates of operation | 1978 (1978)–1982 (1982) |
| Motives | Opposition todemocracy,social liberalism,peripheric nationalist movements,communism andanarchism |
| Active regions | Spain |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Far-right |
| Major actions | Bombings,murder, conspirating against the government. |
| Status | Inactive |
| Size | 100-300 (1978) |
Youth Front (Spanish:Frente de la Juventud; FJ) was a Spanishpolitical youth organization and far-right militant group, sometimes considered aterrorist organization.[3][4]
FJ emerged as a 1978 split ofNew Force, the mainneofrancoist party in Spain at the time. The split with the mainstreamfar-right happened for similar reasons with the previous split of theNational Youth Front (FNJ) in 1977. The split happened due to the stagnation of the main far-right political forces and the frustration of new members of the security section - the sections C and Z - ofFuerza Joven (youth-wing of FN). FJ was founded by José de las Heras and Juan Ignacio González, and later joined by between 100 and 300 members during that year. FJ was opposed to the "parliamentary way" ofFuerza Nueva andFE-JONS, defending also the lack of utility of peaceful demonstrations, supporting the creation of paramilitary units to fight against "marxism".[citation needed]
The Youth Front was based mainly inMadrid andValladolid (while the FNJ was based inBarcelona).[5] FJ supported violence as a destabilizing element of system, and as its main political strategy.[6]
One of the first actions of the group was taking part in the neofascist assault against the Law Faculty of theComplutense University of Madrid in 1979, along with members of Fuerza Joven andFE-JONS. There were at least 30 far-right militants involved in the assault, that resulted in 3 people from the Law Faculty with gunshot wounds.[7] On 29 April 1979, the group stabbed Andrés García, an 18 year old communist, at Goya Street. Andrés died due to the injuries.[8] On 14 July, FJ placed aGoma-2 explosive at the bar "El Parnasillo" (Malasaña), for allegedly being a place were anarchists and drug addicts congregated. One person died and 9 were injured.[9]
In 1980, the group gained new members after the self-dissolution of theNational Youth Front.[citation needed] The most prominent of the new members wasErnesto Milà. At the end of the same year, Juan Ignacio González, the "national secretary" of the organization, was murdered. The murder was never solved, although there is some speculation that it was caused due to an internal feud between rival factions of the organization.[10] His death caused a crisis in the organization.[citation needed]
Twenty-four members were arrested in the cities ofMadrid andValència on 26 January 1981, for various robberies carried out to fund the organization. Also in 1981, 16 members were arrested for various attacks inValladolid, against the headquarters of theCNT,PSOE, Cervantes Cinema and the City Hall. FJ also killed Carlos Javier Idígoras Navarrete and Luis Arribas Santamaría (a beggar).[11] Later, in the same year, FJ also bombed the headquarters of theCommunist Movement and various book shops.[12]
The group was finally dismantled by theSpanish police in 1982, after a demonstration commemorating the23-F coup attempt. During the demonstration members of FJ threwmolotov cocktails against the police.[13]
The historic leader of the group, José de las Heras Hurtado, was in search and seizure since 1984, after failing to appear in the El Parnasillo bombing trial. NewspaperEl País found him in Brazil in 2016.[14]