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Five Islamist terrorists seized in Barcelona

Catalan police have arrested five Tunisian men in Barcelona for sharing over 400 videos on social networks of al-Qaeda leaders Bin Laden and Al-Zarqawi as well as footage of terrorist attacks and tutorials on bomb-making.

Published: 12 June 2013 10:59 CEST

Five Islamist terrorists seized in Barcelona

Operation Kartago led to the arrests of the five men in the Barcelona neighbourhoods of Raval, Encants and La Mina in the early hours of Wednesday morning. File Photo: Josep Lago/AFP

Operation Kartago led to the arrests of the five men in the Barcelona neighbourhoods of Raval, Encants and La Mina in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

The investigation began in 2012 when Spain’s national police force ascertained that the photos and videos being distributed online by the suspects were being approved and followed by a global jihadist movement.

Spain’s Interior Ministry is accusing the men of inciting Islamist terrorism and has pointed out that more arrests could take place if ongoing police searches in the Catalan capital find more extremist content being distributed online.

So far more than 400 photos, videos and texts have been found, including footage of al-Qaeda leaders Bin Laden and Al-Zarqawi giving speeches, executions by firing squad, terrorist attacks, tutorials on bomb-making and muhajideen training.

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Why has the expansion of Barcelona airport prompted mass protests?

People march during a demonstration against the expansion of the Barcelona-El Prat airport. Photo: Pau BARRENA / AFP

Several ecological and agricultural organisations, have demanded that the expansion be stopped due to the fact nearby wetlands and farms would have to be destroyed.

The demonstration took place on Calle Tarragona in the Catalan capital between Plaça d’Espanya and Plaça dels Països Catalans.

The protests still took place, even though last week, Spain suspended the €1.7 billion airport expansion project, citing differences with the Catalan government, after president Pere Aragonès said he wanted to avoid destroying La Ricarda lagoon, a natural reserve next to the airport.

Environmentalists decided not to call off the march, in case plans for the airport expansion still went ahead.

READ ALSO: Six things you need to know about Barcelona airport’s €1.7 billion planned expansion

Political representatives from ERC, En Comú Podem and the CUP also attended, as well as the leader of Más País, Íñigo Errejón; the Deputy Mayor for Ecology of the Barcelona City Council, Janet Sanz, and the Mayor of El Prat de Llobregat, Lluís Mijoler.

People from neighbourhoods across the city marched towards Calle Tarragona and could be seen holding placards that read “Nature yes, airport no and shouting slogans such as “More courgettes and fewer planes” and “Fighting for the climate, health, and life”.

One of the largest groups of people were those from El Prat de Llobregat, the municipality which is home to the airport, who were led by tractors.

People march during a demonstration against the expansion of Barcelona-El Prat airport. Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP

In addition to protesting against the expansion of the El Prat airport, people were also demonstrating against the Winter Olympic Games in the Pyrenees and extensions to airports in Mallorca and Madrid.

A representative of Zeroport, Sara Mingorría said “We are here to defend not only La Ricarda, but the entire Delta”.

The philosopher Marina Garcés also argued that the expansion of the airport would mean “more borders, more mass tourism, more control and more precarious jobs.”

The leader of the commons in the Catalan parliament, Jéssica Albiach, who also attended the protest, asked the PSOE for “coherence”: “You cannot be passing a law against climate change and, at the same time, defend the interests of Aena [the airport operations company]”, she said.

She also urged the leader of the Generalitat, Pere Aragonès, to “definitely say no”.

If the airport expansion in Barcelona goes ahead, environmentalists say that CO2 emissions would rise by a minimum of 33 percent. These levels would surpass the limits set by the Catalan government’s climate targets.

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