The Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations (BCIJ) succeeded on Wednesday, as part of a joint security operation with the Spanish General Information Commissioner, to dismantle a terrorist cell affiliated with Daesh, made up of three individuals in Spain and Morocco. The security interventions carried out by elements of the special forces of the General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance (DGST) enabled the arrest of one of the extremist elements in Chtouka Ait Baha in southern Morocco, simultaneously with the arrest by the Spanish authorities of two other members of the same cell in Almeria, the BCIJ said in a statement.
Investigations have shown that those arrested have pledged allegiance to “Daesh” and were active in the dissemination and promotion of extremist ideas for the purposes of recruitment and enlistment, adds the same source. The defendants showed their willingness to get involved in terrorist operations because they could not reach the strongholds of “Daesh” in the Sahel region and they maintained links with fighters responsible for recruiting and facilitating access to volunteers. to fight in this area notes the press release.
The search carried out at the home of the defendant arrested in Chtouka Ait Baha led to the seizure of equipment and digital media which will be submitted to the necessary technical expertise, as well as a balaclava, a sharp metal piece and manuscripts praising of “Daesh”.
The individual arrested in Morocco has been placed in police custody for the purposes of the judicial investigation carried out under the supervision of the prosecutor’s office in charge of terrorism and extremism cases, while the competent Spanish authorities will carry out the inquiries and investigations necessary with the two members of this cell arrested in Spain.
This joint security operation is part of the continuous and remarkable coordination between the Moroccan security services and their Spanish counterparts in order to neutralize all the terrorist threats that threaten the two countries as well as within the framework of the strengthening of bilateral cooperation. with a view to identifying the ramifications and links existing between the terrorist cells active in the two countries, concludes the same source.
