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Rabat – A joint Spanish-Moroccan security collaboration resulted in the arrest of a Moroccan national in Spain with alleged ties to ISIS.
The Spanish national police arrested a 21-year-old Moroccan individual on Tuesday, July 7, at a gas station in Vitoria, in northern Spain, El Pais reported.
The suspect was accused of recruiting and indoctrinating people to join a terrorist organization.
According to El Correo, the Moroccan national used audio-visual material to incite an individual to commit attacks in Spain.
The Spanish outlet quoted police resources as saying, “In fact, it was Morocco which put the Spanish security forces on alert.” Following the North African country’s warning, the suspect “was subject to discreet surveillance.”
The Interior Ministry later reported in a statement that the man was known for belonging “to radical circles of jihadist ideology in Algeciras,” where he usually resided.
According to Europa Press, the Spanish interior ministry stressed that “the cooperation between Spain and Morocco and the constant alert of both countries is fruitful in operations that allow the deactivation of this type of threat on both sides of the Strait of Gibraltar.”
According to police investigations, the suspect was in contact with another individual who was arrested late last year in Morocco. Their ultimate goal was to commit attacks.
Not the first arrest in Vitoria
The Spanish police have collaborated often with Moroccan authorities to arrest Moroccan nationals allegedly linked to terrorist groups.
In February 2017, Spanish police arrested a 41-year-old Moroccan man, also in Vitoria, on suspicion of links to ISIS. A 36-year-old Spanish woman was arrested in Alicante on the same day.
In the same month, Spanish authorities arrested two Moroccan nationals aged 25 and 27 in Barcelona. They were convicted of supporting ISIS financially through illegal activities.
In March 2017, the Spanish interior ministry announced the arrest of three Moroccans in Roda de Ter, eastern Spain. The suspects were accused of inciting jihadists to carry out terrorist acts on social media.
