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Rabat – Morocco’s Central Bureau of Judicial Investigation (BCIJ) dismantled on Monday in Sidi Slimane, 100 kilometers from Rabat, a new terror cell that was planning to carry out attacks to undermine the security of the country.
The members of the cell are aged between 23 and 51, a statement from the Ministry of Interior said.
The mastermind of the cell already has a criminal record, having been previously convicted on terror charges. The statement said that Moroccan security services arrested him before in 2014 following the dismantling of a terror cell that used to recruit fighters and send them to conflict zones in Syria and Iraq.
The leader recruited the members of the cell to share “extremist thoughts,” and plan terror acts to undermine security and public order.
The ministry of interior said that the operation reveals Morocco is among the countries that are facing terror threats, “as well as the insistence of supporters of extremist thought, particularly those affiliated to ISIS to carry out terrorist operations.”
Security services seized electronic devices, bladed weapons, a military trellis, and manuscripts to pledge allegiance to ISIS ideology.
The BCIJ put all the suspects in custody for further investigation.
The operation is part of Morocco’s security approach to combat terror and extremism.
The BCIJ is one of the strongest security units in the country. Earlier this year, BCIJ carried out several operations to dismantle terror cells and networks active in drug and human trafficking.
One of the operations was in February when the BCIJ arrested a seven-member cell in Casablanca, Mohammedia (30 kilometers northeast of Casablanca), and Azilal (270 kilometers southeast of Casablanca).
The anti-terrorism unit has been carrying similar operations since its creation in 2015, as part of Morocco’s approach to combat terrorism.
