Sixteen alleged Islamic fundamentalists, suspected of having links with terrorist organizations and recruitment camps, have been arrested in Spain, the Spanish Interior Ministry said.
Out of those arrested, 11, mostly Moroccans and Algerians, are believed to be recruiting Islamists for Al Qaeda and its commander Abu-Musab Al Zarqawi as well as for another militant network called Ansar Al Islam, a group of Kurdish fighters aiding Al Qaeda’s terrorist efforts.
“The activities of this Islamist network centered on the recruitment and sending of jihadists to Iraq with the goal of committing suicide terrorist activities against the coalition forces,” a statement by the ministry said.
According to ministry officials, the men, who get their orders from Syria, fund the network through sale of narcotics and robberies.
Ministry officials said that around 500 officers of the Spanish police force raided several areas in Valencia, Barcelona, some parts of Andalusia and Ceuta, an enclave on the northern coast of Morocco, to swoop down on those with terrorist links.
The other five apprehended were connected to the train blast in Madrid last year, which claimed 191 lives and left 1500 injured.
“Basically, what the police accuse them of is raising money and recruiting people to do activities abroad related with the international jihad,” said Interior Minister Jose Antonio Alonso.
According to sources, these 11 said they were ready to become ‘martyrs for Islam’ and were waiting for orders to carry out suicide bombings. The statement by the ministry added that the pledge of carrying out suicide bombings clearly ‘highlights the extreme radicalism and the danger of most of those arrested in this operation’. “Several members are willing to commit a suicide terrorist act as soon as the leaders of the organization ordered it,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, Spain’s national court is in the middle of a legal case against 24 accused of aiding the operations of the Al Qaeda branch in Madrid. Three of these have been accused of being involved with the planning of 9/11 attacks in the United States.
