Morocco Dismantles ISIS-Linked Terror Cell in Tetouan, Three Arrested

The Central Bureau for Judicial Investigations (BCIJ) dismantled, Friday morning, an ISIS-linked terror cell in the city of Tetouan.

This security operation led to the arrest of three extremists aged between 21 and 38, BCIJ said in a release, adding that one the individuals arrested is a relative of an ISIS fighter in Syria and Iraq.

Investigations enabled to identify a location in the Old City of tetouan which was used as a safe house by the cell’s members to hold meetings and plan for their terrorist schemes, the source said, adding that BCIJ officers moved to this location and a complete survey of its contents and facilities was conducted by the explosives detection technicians after all security and preventive measures were taken to ensure the safety of residents and neighboring families.

Searches conducted at this house as well as at the homes of the suspects led to the seizure of an ISIS banner, a text of allegiance to the alleged caliph of this organization, bladed weapons of various types and sizes, as well as information and electronic devices.

Searches also led to the seizure of chemical equipment used in the manufacture of traditional explosive devices, including bags containing sulfur and phosphorous, barrels containing gasoline fuel and bags packed with large quantities of screws and metal pellets, electrical wires and electronic batteries, empty glass bottles suspected of being used to prepare Molotov cocktails, and suspicious liquid materials which will be submitted to the Forensic Police Laboratory.

According to initial investigations, the members of this terrorist cell have reached an advanced stage of preparation as a preamble to start the implementation of their terrorist projects, as they documented in a video tape their allegiance to the alleged emir of the “Islamic State”, according to the method and conditions required by this terrorist organization in which they set out the objectives of their terrorist plans.

Investigations also revealed that the suspects made several exploratory visits to identify the targets to be attacked with improvised explosive devices or using individual terrorist methods in operations that simulate the terrorist method used by ISIS fighters.

The suspects were placed on custody, while investigations are underway under the supervision of the Public Prosecutor’s Office in charge of terrorism cases in order to highlight the cell’s terrorist projects and identify its possible links and ramifications.