OSINT SUMMARY
Morocco on Thursday 23rd June 2016 announce that it had dismantled an ISIS-linked active cell and arrested 10 men allegedly planning attacks in the north African kingdom.
According to a statement released by Morocco Interior Ministry, the cell was operating in the eastern city of Oujda and in the town of Tendrara in the same region bordering Algeria.
The statement indicates that the said 10 arrested members were meeting in a safe house planning to rob a mall in the city of Oujda in order to fund their attacks across the kingdom.
The group included an Algerian national living in Morocco illegally, according to the statement carried by state news agency MAP.
Hundreds of fighters from Morocco and other Maghreb states like Tunisia and Algeria have joined militant forces in Syria.
Some are threatening to return and create new jihadist wings in their home countries, security experts have warned.
Libya also has become a major draw for jihadists from North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa as ISIS has taken advantage of the security chaos there to build a base, operate training camps and take over the city of Sirte.
The Moroccan government fears that about 1,500 Moroccan nationals are fighting alongside militant factions in Syria and Iraq.
