On July 22, 2007, Italian authorities arrested three individuals suspected of running a “terror school” near Perugia in central Italy. The arrest followed a two-year investigation into the suspected terror practices occurring at the mosque run by a Moroccan Imam and two religious aides.
In recent weeks Italy and Germany have experienced fresh concerns relating to terrorist activity. As we previously reported, in June 2007, German authorities announced the country was facing a re-invigorated threat of terrorist attacks. On June 22, 2007, German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble publicly announced the threat is similar to the plots and threat atmosphere Germany had experienced in the weeks leading up to the September 11, 2001 attacks. Specifically, Schaeuble stated the current threat Germany faces is serious and alluded that suicide attacks on German soil are possible in the near-term.
The latest arrest highlights the increasing risk European nations, to include Italy, face posed by terror cells operating within the region.
Mosque Contains Terror Training Materials
On July 22, 2007, Italian authorities arrested Imam Korchi El Mostapha and two aides, Mohammed El Jari and Driss Safika in a pre-dawn raid in Ponte Felcino, seven kilometers north of Perugia, Italy. Evidence uncovered indicated the mosque was training religious followers in explosives and poisons, maintaining chemical supplies including cyanide and acids, as well as instructions to operate a Boeing 747.
Anti-terror police chief, Carlo De Stefano, stated the so-called “terror school” was an active part of a widespread terror network consisting of small-scale cells characterized by independent action. The Ponte Felcino mosque was believed to have been an active terror cell.
Activities at the mosque included the storage of potentially dangerous chemicals and the screening of terrorist training films. The seemingly modest mosque located on the ground level of a residential building, contained chemical substances, including acids, nitrates and ferro-cyanide, materials that may have been employed to experiment during training courses.
Officials Arrest Three North Africans
Following an on-going investigation, authorities arrested three men believed to have maintained connections to the Moroccan Islamic Combat Group (GICM). The GICM is suspected to have ties to al-Qaeda and may have played a significant role in terror attacks in Casablanca in 2003 and the Madrid train bombings in 2004.
The detained men charged with running an alleged “terror school” are Imam Korchi El Moustapha, Mohamed El Jari, and Driss Safika. All are of Moroccan decent. Additionally, purportedly the Perugia terror cell maintained contact with at least two members of North African terror group, the GICM, who were arrested approximately in 2005.
In a related raid, approximately 20 foreign students who frequented the mosque were arrested. Police are also searching for an additional suspect believed to have already departed Italy.
Italy Joins List of European Countries on the Lookout
In recent months alarming terror incidents to include two failed terror plots in London and Glasgow have raised the terror threat currently facing European nations. In the wake of “terror school” arrests in Perugia, Italian Interior Minister Guiliano Amato welcomed the police action adding that it is necessary for officials and the community itself, to continue to pay close attention to mosques being used for activities seemingly unrelated to religion.
Concerns expressed by Italian officials are echoed elsewhere in the region, to include Germany. On July 21, 2007, German Deputy Interior Minister, August Hanning, indicated the danger of terror attacks on German soil in the near future is very real. Specifically, German officials have received indications that an al-Qaeda attack may be in the works targeting Germany in the near-term.
We believe Italy, akin to neighboring Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Denmark remain at significant risk for an al-Qaeda inspired terror attack.
