The Spanish Interior Ministry announced on Friday the arrest of two suspected terrorists, members of Al-Qaeda since 2014 and returning from Syria. In a statement, the department noted that these two foreign jihadists, arrested by the national police, were arrested in Spain and Austria.
The investigation began earlier this year when the Information Commissioner General learned that two “foreign terrorist fighters” linked to Spain and of Moroccan nationality were planning to enter Europe. The steps began under the direction of the central court of instruction and the national prosecutor’s office of the National Audience.
One of the detainees had lived in Spain before moving to a conflict zone in 2014, while the other left Morocco the following year. The latter had never lived in Spain, but a large part of his family had lived in the country for seven years, it is said.
Once in Syria, the two men joined groups linked to Al-Qaeda and received military training. After the loss of territory in the Syrian-Iraqi zone by terrorist groups, they settled in Turkey, where they lived for a few months while waiting to be able to cross clandestinely to Europe.
The two individuals managed to enter Europe two months ago by taking the so-called Balkan route, passing through Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, and Austria. In the latter country, one was arrested under a European arrest warrant (OEDE) while the second continued his journey to Spain, where he took refuge in a house in Mataró before his arrest.
This operation was carried out by the General Information Police Station and the Provincial Information Brigades of Barcelona and Valencia in coordination with the National Intelligence Center. The same source highlights “the close collaboration of the FBI, the Moroccan DGST, the Austrian DSN, the German police authorities, and Europol”.
