Security cooperation between Morocco and Spain "was crucial" in dismantling a terrorist cell linked to ISIS in the Sahel, composed of nine members, six of whom were active in Madrid, Ibiza, and Sebta, the Spanish National Police Directorate reported on Tuesday.
"The collaboration of the General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance (DGST), which arrested three members of the cell in Tetouan and Fnideq, was crucial to the dismantling of this group," the Spanish police said in a statement.
Thanks to this security cooperation, the authorities were able to neutralize "a real threat to the security of both countries," the statement emphasized, noting that the cell was made up of highly radicalized individuals, adhering to terrorist ISIS ideologies, and showing a willingness to commit violent acts.
After thorough surveillance, the authorities revealed that these individuals were engaged in "belligerent jihadist activity, making direct threats against people from the west populations and the Jewish community, and inciting violent acts," the Spanish police stated.
The searches conducted at the homes of the suspects, as part of this joint and simultaneous security operation between Moroccan and Spanish authorities, led to the seizure of bladed weapons and computer equipment.
On Monday, the investigating judge of the National Court ordered the detention of six individuals arrested on Spanish soil, including former detainees in terrorism-related cases in Spain.
