Eight Including 7 Pakistanis Arrested In Spain, suspected of 26/11 attack

Mtoday news

New Delhi, Dec. 01: In a major development, the Spanish authorities claimed to have arrested at least eight men over suspicion of having links with the deadly terror attacks in Mumbai, reports said on Wednesday.

As per reports, out of those arrested, seven men are of Pakistani origin and one is an African. The leads obtained by the Spanish authorities suggest that these men are closely associated with radical Islamic cells operating in Pakistan.

 

 

Those arrested form part of a larger group, which has been held in Barcelona and the nearby towns of Badalona, Santa Coloma de Gramanet, Igualada and Mataro, in northeastern Spain.

These men were involved in making fake ID cards, which were being sent to their handlers in Pakistan for terror-related schemes.

 

The officials in Spain believe that the group, whose 15 members have been arrested, is supporting attacks on American forces and their allies in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Spanish Interior Ministry has confirmed the arrests but neither they nor the Pakistan government or the Indian authorities have officially established any links between the eight terror suspects and the 26/11 attacks.

The group also involves people of Moroccan and Algerian nationality and is thought to be involved in the recruiting, training and financing of terrorists from North Africa to be sent to fight Western forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Spanish police have also seized computers, cell phones, books, agendas and "documentation linked to Islamic jihad from these men, who are in the age bracket ranging from 20 to 39 years.