Morocco smashes another sleeper cell

04/07/2008

Moroccans are praising the arrest of 35 suspected terrorists based on information provided by Algerian authorities. Some however, say that security measures need to be complemented by economic and social development.

By Sarah Touahri for Magharebia in Rabat – 04/07/08

[Getty Images] While praising Moroccan security forces for dismantling another terror cell using information from Algerian authorities, Moroccans are also calling for social and economic measures to counter extremism.

Moroccan security services arrested 35 suspected members of a terrorist ring specialising in recruiting volunteers for al-Qaeda in Iraq and Algeria, the Ministry of the Interior reported on Wednesday (July 2nd).

The terrorist ring was said to have recruited and arranged passage for some 30 would-be suicide bombers to Iraq and three volunteers seeking to fight for the organisation's branch in Algeria.

The arrests were made in Rabat, Oujda, Larache, Tangier, Ain Taoujtate and Skhinate based on confessions from three individuals recently arrested by Algerian security forces. The two countries apparently co-operated to share the information.

Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa said at a cabinet meeting on Thursday that the network had planned terrorist attacks threatening stability and security in the country.

"Everything will be done, in accordance with current legal procedures, to seek out the members of this network and hand them over to the courts. Investigations are now under way in order to arrest other persons outside Morocco," he said.

International relations professor Taj Eddine El Houssaini told Magharebia that "these latest arrests prove that there are sleeper cells in Morocco. This means that the necessary precautions must be taken to arrest them and prevent tragic accidents."

Houssaini said that the authorities are well aware of the threat and that their policy of prevention has had some success in dismantling sleeper cells before they strike.

However, the professor added that despite the precautions taken, a risk still remains.

"In addition to security measures, economic and social measures must also be employed in order to tackle the problem. This is the job of several parties including the government, political parties, civil society and schools."

Unified Socialist Party General Secretary Mohamed Moujahid agreed, stressing in a statement to Magharebia that focusing on the security angle alone is insufficient.

"The state should look to economic and social factors in order to build a true democracy and give people confidence in the future," he asserted.

Student Nawal Batal also weighed in.

"Of course we want to see the authorities to catch terrorists who threaten the safety of people and property, but this has to be done in observance of the law and civil liberties. I also think they should run awareness campaigns for young people in order to prevent them from being indoctrinated by fundamentalists," she told Magharebia.

This week's operation was the third to dismantle a terrorist ring in Morocco this year. In February, security services arrested 36 members of a terrorist group led by Abdelkader Belliraj, a dual Belgian-Moroccan national. In May, it was announced that an 11-member ring planning attacks in Morocco and Belgium had been broken up.