Rabat (KAAB TV) – The Moroccan police in charge of fighting terrorism announced on Thursday that they foiled a plan to “target security areas,” arresting four people suspected of having links to the Daesh group fighting in the Sahel.
The police also disclosed information about many jihadists from Morocco who traveled to Somalia.
Habboub Cherkaoui, head of the Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations, who held a press conference in the city of Sale, said that the operation prevented a “dangerous terrorist plan.”
The four suspects, all Moroccans, three of whom were brothers, were arrested on Sunday in Had Soualem, near Casablanca, according to a press release previously issued by the police.
Cherkaoui added that the group had already recorded a statement claiming responsibility for the planned attacks, using explosives.
Later investigations revealed that their targets were “important security sites, large markets, and other public places” frequented by Moroccans and foreigners, he said.
According to preliminary investigations, the Moroccan authorities believe that the suspects had direct contact with a leader of Daesh in the Sahel, who recruited soldiers and monitored them through social media.
He added that their ages ranged from 26 to 35 years old, and they had “low-income jobs.”
Cherkaoui noted that jihadist groups in Africa are “a real threat to the kingdom.”
He pointed out that 130 Moroccan citizens have traveled to jihadist war zones in Somalia and the Sahel since late 2022.
This statement comes as many foreign fighters from different Arab countries were killed recently in the war between Daesh and the Puntland forces in the Bari region.
“Most of them wanted to expand the operations of their groups in the kingdom,” added Cherkaoui, speaking of the Moroccans who traveled to Somalia.
Although Morocco has largely avoided jihadist violence in recent years, Morocco’s security forces regularly report arrests and thwarted attack plans.