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| Spain arrests 'Syria jihadist suspects' in Ceuta | Spain arrests 'Syria jihadist suspects' in Ceuta |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Eight people have been arrested in the Spanish territory of Ceuta on suspicion of recruiting jihadist fighters to go to Syria and elsewhere, police say. | Eight people have been arrested in the Spanish territory of Ceuta on suspicion of recruiting jihadist fighters to go to Syria and elsewhere, police say. |
| Those detained in the raids on Friday morning are accused of being part of a network linked to al-Qaeda. | Those detained in the raids on Friday morning are accused of being part of a network linked to al-Qaeda. |
| They are suspected of funding, indoctrinating and facilitating travel for would-be fighters. | They are suspected of funding, indoctrinating and facilitating travel for would-be fighters. |
| Police say the network was based in the Spanish North African enclave of Ceuta and the Moroccan city of Fnideq. | Police say the network was based in the Spanish North African enclave of Ceuta and the Moroccan city of Fnideq. |
| In a statement, the ministry of interior said dozens of people, some of them under 18, had left both Ceuta and Moroccan territory under the cover of the al-Qaeda-linked network. | In a statement, the ministry of interior said dozens of people, some of them under 18, had left both Ceuta and Moroccan territory under the cover of the al-Qaeda-linked network. |
| Some of them had taken part in suicide attacks, while others had joined training camps to prepare for armed action, the ministry said. | Some of them had taken part in suicide attacks, while others had joined training camps to prepare for armed action, the ministry said. |
| Several groups of jihadists were still expecting to travel from Spain to Syria, the ministry statement said, adding that the investigation was still ongoing. | Several groups of jihadists were still expecting to travel from Spain to Syria, the ministry statement said, adding that the investigation was still ongoing. |
| The National Police and the Civil Guard (Guardia Civil) began separate investigation in 2009 and 2011 but began working together earlier this year. | The National Police and the Civil Guard (Guardia Civil) began separate investigation in 2009 and 2011 but began working together earlier this year. |
| Details about those arrested were not immediately available. | |
| The presence of foreign fighters amongst those fighting the Assad regime is causing anxiety in Western countries, as well as in Syria itself. | |
| Last year, three people from Ceuta who went to fight against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad were killed in separate battles, the Spanish news agency Efe reported. | |
| And in May, a family from Ceuta reported the disappearance of a young man who they suspected might have been picked up by a militant network to fight in Syria, Efe said. | |
| Since the Syrian conflict began in March 2011, at least 93,000 people have been killed, the UN said on 13 June. | |
| Among the other foreigners killed in Syria were two Britons and an American woman. |