Morocco
The Moroccan authorities have announced on Tuesday the arrest of four suspected members of the jihadist group Islamic State (IS), accused of planning attacks against “key sites” in the economic capital, Casablanca.
“The Central Office of Judicial Investigation (BCIJ) on Tuesday dismantled a terrorist cell composed of four extremists bustling between Casablanca and common Mograne (a rural town about fifty kilometers northeast of Rabat),” the Ministry of Interior said in a statement.
“According to the early finding from the investigation the cell members have pledged allegiance to the IS and prepared dangerous terrorist plans against the stability and security of the Kingdom and targeted operations against key sites in Casablanca,” the ministry said.
Since 2002, 159 “terrorist cells” have been dismantled in Morocco, including 38 since 2013 which were “closely connected” with IS, according to a previous statement from the Interior Ministry. In late July, the authorities reported the arrest of 52 people suspected of planning attacks in the country and wanted to create a local branch of IS. Unlike other countries, Morocco has been spared deadly attacks over the past five years.
Go to video
UK police arrest three of migrants' deaths in Channel
01:02
Pics of the day: April 23, 2024
00:53
West African Sahel is becoming a drug smuggling corridor, UN warns, as seizures skyrocket
Go to video
Spain: 2 smugglers convicted for the death of 4 Moroccan migrants
Go to video
Another Nigerian socialite Cubana Chief Priest charged for throwing money in air
Go to video
Senegal seizes nearly 1,140kgs of cocaine