Spain Dismantled Online ’ISIL’ Recruiting Network
Local Editor
Spain declared it had broken up an online network accused of recruiting young women to join "ISIL" militants fighting in Iraq and Syria and arrested four suspects.
The arrests came as European nations scramble to halt a surge in young people wanting to travel to Iraq and Syria to fight with the Takfiris.
In the latest operation by Spain's authorities targeting such recruiting networks, two of the suspects were arrested in Melilla, the Spanish enclave neighboring Morocco.
The others were detained in Girona and Barcelona in Spain's northeast.
The interior ministry declared in a statement that the two arrested in Melilla were said to be behind the creation and operation of several Internet platforms spreading propaganda, particularly for "ISIL".
"In line with the strategy of the Daesh terrorist group, they focused on the recruitment of women who, after a process of indoctrination, would end up joining the terrorist group in conflict zones," it said.
In addition the ministry added that private home visits were also organized for recruiting purposes and a number of young people had begun preparations to travel to war zones.
One of those arrested ran a "virtual community" with "ISIL" propaganda and more than 1,000 subscribers, it said.
The statement cited that, on Facebook, he had a "multitude of subscribers" outside Spain, including Latin America and countries such as Belgium, France, Morocco, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Turkey and the United States.
One of the suspects arrested in Spain's northeast was described as an "ISIL" sympathizer-turned-propagandist. The other was said to have published video to recruit potential extremist.
Authorities were working to establish links between the two in Melilla and those in Spain's northeast.
Spain had dismantled several similar networks, particularly in Melilla and its other African enclave, Ceuta. The two enclaves constituted the only land borders between Africa and Europe.
Authorities estimate that around 100 Spanish nationals had joined Takfiri fighters in Iraq and Syria, a lower number than those from France, Britain and Germany.
Britain said some 500 people had travelled from the country to join militant groups, while France said about 1,400 residents had either joined the Takfiris in Syria and Iraq or were planning to do so.
France announced that it had confiscated the passports of six suspected would-be Takfiris and would ban another 40 from traveling.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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