The 23-year-old, in preventive detention, allegedly wanted to join a terrorist group.
Last Thursday, the Mossos d’Esquadra (Catalan police) arrested a highly radicalized man at El Prat Airport who was planning to travel to Palestine. The arrest came after Catalan police investigated his attempts to join a Palestinian terrorist group to wage defensive jihad. Officers found that the 23-year-old suspect had purchased a one-way, non-return ticket to France. From there, he allegedly sought a way to reach Palestine. Specifically, according to ARA, the young man wanted to join the Al Qassam Brigades, considered the armed wing of Hamas. His intention was to reach the Gaza Strip.
The man was brought before the Central Investigative Court of the National Court two days after his arrest, on March 29. The judge has ordered him to be held in pretrial detention, charging him with self-indoctrination and accusing him of wanting to join a terrorist organization to fight against Israel. The police investigation is part of the General Information Commissioner’s violent extremism prevention programs, which aim to reduce the threat of the proliferation of violent extremism in Catalonia. According to the Mossos d’Esquadra (Catalan police) in a statement, this is one of the main tools for preventing and detecting violent radicalization processes in Catalonia.
The publication of the investigation comes the day after the Civil Guard arrested three people (one in Catalonia and two abroad) in an operation targeting Hezbollah’s logistical structure. The defendants, who had previously been arrested, allegedly manufactured more than a thousand drones for the pro-Iranian militia after purchasing their components from several Spanish and European companies. The operation was part of a European-wide operation.
