Al-Qaeda ‘lone wolves’ arrested in Spain

POLICE in Spain have arrested two suspected members of al-Qaeda’s North African branch, one of whom Spanish authorities allege praised the Boston Marathon bombings, but neither of whom was known to possess any explosives or to be planning any attack.

Nou Mediouni, an Algerian, was arrested in Zaragoza, while Hassan El Jaaouani, a Moroccan, was arrested in Murcia.

Interior minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz said there were “sufficient grounds” to warrant the arrests. He said the two suspects had been acting as “lone wolves”.

Mr Fernandez Diaz said one of the pair had praised the Boston attacks. The private news agency Europa Press, citing the minister, said this evidence had been found in a document seized by police during the arrests.

Madrid is to stage its own marathon on Sunday. Authorities say while no risk or threat has been detected, 1,100 police and security personnel will be on duty.