Spain seeks explanation for Morocco arrests

MADRID (Reuters) - The Spanish government has asked Morocco to provide an explanation of the circumstances which led to the arrest Sunday of 11 activists in Western Sahara, Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said Monday.

The detainees, who were arrested during a demonstration for independence for the disputed Western Sahara territory, arrived in Tenerife in the Canary Islands earlier Monday.

"The Foreign Ministry has asked the Secretary of State to compile the relevant information and explanations from the Moroccan government about what happened and we are waiting for this," Zapatero told reporters in Shanghai where he is on an official visit.

He said an evaluation of the incident will be made once the Moroccan goverment's response has been received, but said diplomacy will remain the cornerstone of Spain's foreign policy.

The arrests in Western Sahara were made days after Spain sought to ease tensions with Morocco, saying sporadic blockades by anti-Spanish demonstrators at the gates of its Melilla enclave on the north African coast had served to bolster police cooperation between the two countries.

(Reporting by Itziar Reinlein; writing by Judy MacInnes; editing by Michael Roddy)