José Antonio Etxebarrieta Ortiz (Bilbao, 1940 - 1973) was a Spanish lawyer of Basque origin and leader of Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA), brother of Txabi Etxebarrieta.

Militant of EGI, in 1958 he was arrested for the first time when he distributed leaflets in Begoña and imprisoned two months in Larrinaga. Once released, he went to Paris, where he had hard confrontations with the leadership of the Basque Nationalist Party, which led him to contact ETA.

In the summer of 1963 he fell seriously ill and was diagnosed with "spinal cord disease," a rare disease caused by inflammation of the spinal cord. For three years he was completely paralyzed, spending great seasons in a sanatorium, where he received frequent visits from his brother Txabi. During the convalescence he read Marxist classics, especially Lenin. In 1966 he began walking with crutches and prepared for the V Assembly the Txatarra Report, which became the basis for the expulsion from ETA of the sector that would later become the Communist Movement of Euskadi (EMK).

Within ETA he was responsible for the writing of the Zutik publication. On the occasion of the trial of Burgos he was in charge of the defense of Xabier Izko of the Church, accused of being the material author of the death of Melitón Manzanas. In 48 hours he wrote the 80 pages of allegations against the accusation that was weighing on Izko. Later he would collaborate with Gisèle Halimi in the elaboration of the famous book about the process.

In March 1973, he had a sudden worsening of his illness. Despite this, he participated in the defense of ETA militants before a new council of war. He died on April 3, 1973.

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