Spanish cops arrest 50 ISIS jihadists who were primed to attack holiday hotpsots THIS SUMMER
One in three terror suspects arrested in Spain formed part of cells ready and prepared to carry out attacks
Police have smashed dozens of ISIS terror plots to attack holiday destinations popular with Brits in Spain, it has emerged.
Investigators say a third of the 150 suspects arrested in the country formed part of cells ready to carry out atrocities.
The shocking figure was revealed in a study by international think tank the Real Instituto Elcano.
Investigators Fernando Reinares and Carola Garcia-Calvo made the discovery while profiling 150 alleged jihadis arrested by the Spanish authorities between 2013 and May of this year.
They found 86 per cent of those detained belonged to Islamic State.
Related stories
They also concluded 94 per cent participated in activities relating to ISIS terrorism with other people - and only six per cent acted as so-called ‘lone wolves.’
The study, presented on Tuesday and called ‘Islamic State in Spain’, determined 35.4 per cent of those profiled formed part of a cell, group or network which aimed to carry out terror attacks in Spain.
And 65 per cent had either travelled to Syria or Iraq to join the ranks of ISIS or had taken the decision to do so.
ISIS jihadis have consistently vowed to unleash terror on Spain as part of a campaign to recover the country for Islam.
Tom Wilson, an expert on the Middle East at the Henry Jackson society, said earlier this year Spanish destinations including holiday hotspots offered likely targets for terrorists.
He said: “Islamic extremists, such as those in Islamic State, certainly see any territory that was once conquered by Islam as being up for grabs, so to speak.
“That goes for Spain, which is often viewed by Islamists as representing the highpoint of Islamic conquest into Europe.”