Spain jails nine for forming part of extremist recruitment network
Xinhua, September 28, 2016 Adjust font size:
The Spanish High Court on Wednesday sentenced nine members of a jihadist recruitment cell.
The group, known as the Brigada Al Andalus (former Muslim kingdom of Spain), carried out part of its activities in a mosque, situated close to the M30 ring road in the capital city.
According to the rule, the accused formed a platform for recruiting, radicalizing and sending fighters to combat areas such as Syria and Iraq. The Brigada Al Andalus was organized mainly in Madrid and operated from the start of 2011.
Eight members of the group were given eight-year jail terms, while the man considered to be the leader of the network, Lahcen Ikassrien, was handed a 10-year sentence for forming part of a terrorist organization and another year and a half for forging official documents.
A Moroccan citizen, Ikassrien had been captured by U.S. forces in Iraq and sent to Guantanamo Bay before being extradited to Spain in 2005, where he was released after appeal to the High Court in 2006.
He is considered to be the ideological reference point of the group, which used the Islamic Cultural Center in the mosque to try and attract new recruits. Enditem