Spain: Top terrorist recruitment in Europe

Spain: Top terrorist recruitment in Europe

Spain has become the biggest breeding ground and recruitment place for Muslim terrorists in Europe, reports Spanish newspaper 20 Minutos Thursday based on the Spanish ministry of Internal Affairs, almost five years after the deadly attacks by Muslims in Madrid on March 11, 2004.  191 train commuters were killed then and 1,800 others were injured.

Moreover, according to a recent report of the national police and the Guardia Civil, Spain remains a potential target for international Muslim terrorism.  Al-Qaeda still strives to make headway by violence in Al Andalus, the Muslim kingdom which took up 3/4 of Spain in the Middle Ages.

Since the attacks in Madrid, the Spanish security services arrested 384 suspected Muslim terrorists.

Most belonged to networks which recruited and trained terrorists and which sent suicide bombers to Iraq.  In addition the arrested Muslims belonged to groups who spread a militant form of Islam and who collect money for Islamic Jihad (holy war)

Most suspected Muslim terrorist were arrested in recent years in Catalonia (80%).  Of the 130 terror suspected current in prison, two thirds were arrested in Catalonia.

This week in an anti-terror operation the police arrested 11 people in Barcelona who were suspected of having helped terrorists.

Source: Volkskrant (Dutch) based on 20 minutos (Spanish), h/t NRP

See also:
* Spain: Over 100 suicide bombers
* Spain: Imams recalled by Morocco
* Spain: New Taliban threat video
* Spain: Burglaries finance African terrorism

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