Spanish police have arrested seven people, including four suspected “jihadist influencers”, for alleged links to Islamist terrorism.
The arrests were made in Madrid, as well as in the city of Toledo, which is an hour’s drive south of the Spanish capital. Cops also made at least one arrest in the north-west city of Pontevedra, which is just a 40-minute drive from the Portuguese border.
Of the three people arrested in Toledo, one was a minor, and another is accused to have “significant influence and accessibility… to disseminate jihadist ideology”.
The raids were made thanks to the collaboration of Moroccan authorites, according to Spanish outlet Noticias.
The arrests made in Pontevedra and Madrid were of people who are accused of being engaged in spreading radical content on social media.
According to reports, they are accused of hiding their radicalism behind videos about physical training and self-defence, while including slogans with a “strong indoctrination power” using ISIS material.
The same report claims Europol is involved in the operation.
Although rare, Spain has seen Islamist terror attacks before. The infamous 2004 Madrid bombings saw 191 people die and around 1800 injured after Al-Qaeda terrorists blew up four commuters trains simultaneously.
More recently, in October 2021, an Islamist terrorist drove their car into a terrace in Murcia, killing one.
The attacker, Abdellah Gmara, killed a man sitting with his with in Torre Pacheco. Gmara also died in the incident.
