Jihadist Group dismantled in Spanish enclave of Ceuta

Two people were arrested in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta on Tuesday morning as Spanish security forces dismantled a jihadist terrorist cell.

The Spanish Interior Ministry informed that rather than being a group dedicated to recruiting new members for the Islamic State, this was a "cell that was fully prepared and ready to carry out an attack on Spanish territory."

It is thought the pair arrested were intending to carry out 'lone wolf' style attacks, such as those carried out in France against the Charlie Hebdo magazine on January 7, while authorities have confirmed that both of those arrested were of Spanish nationality, but Moroccan origin.

The arrests are a continuation of an operation begun on January 24 which led to four other arrests (two pairs of brothers) in Ceuta in which police discovered an automatic pistol, combat clothes, knives, machetes, documents and vehicle license plates.

The people detained in January and on Tuesday, were all active members of the cell, which carried out an "aggressive campaign of communication in forums and jihadist pages on the internet," and which were centered "both in the need to recruit new combatants to the conflict zone (in Syria and Iraq) and also in committing terrorist acts with wide repercussion in the media in any Western nation, especially in Europe, in support of the Islamic State".

Speaking in January, Spain's Interior Minister, Jorge Fernandez Diaz confirmed that the four terrorists who had been arrested were "radicalized, well trained both physically and mentally and ... prepared to carry out an attack and 'go up in flames."

Diaz also drew parallels with the jihadist attack on Charlie Hebdo and concluded it was probable those arrested were planning acts of a similar nature." Endit