Morocco arrests 10 ISIL-linked cell members, foils attack

Morocco says it has arrested 10 members of a cell linked to the ISIL affiliate in Sahel Province (ISSP), foiling a planned attack.

The Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations, Morocco’s chief agency responsible for counterterrorism operations, said on Monday that as well as seizing the suspects, simultaneous raids across several Moroccan cities had found bladed weapons, military-style clothing, bomb‑making instructions, digital material and chemicals, as well as a car suspected to have been modified for use in a bombing or ramming attack.

A warehouse used by the cell held butane gas cylinders and pressure cookers filled with nails and electrically wired.

Police said the group’s plans were “in an advanced stage of preparation”.

The last attack by an ISIL-affiliated group on Moroccan soil occurred in 2023, when three men killed a policeman in Casablanca.

Recent years have seen a surge of activity by fighter groups affiliated with ISIL and al-Qaeda across the Sahel region and West Africa.

In nearby Mali, al-Qaeda affiliate Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) exploited a vacuum created by a collapse in government control to seize towns and cities, even besieging the capital in November.

Neighbouring Mauritania has also been facing cross-border attacks by affiliated fighter groups along its border with Mali.

ISIL and al-Qaeda affiliates have also expanded their presence in Burkina Faso and Niger.

While Morocco has largely been spared from regional violence, authorities say 130 citizens have been recruited by the ISSP in recent years.