Three arrested in France for suspected ties to Barcelona attacks

The individuals in custody have connections to incarcerated alleged terrorist Driss Oukabir

Police officers escort citizens away from the center of Barcelona after the attacks on August 17 (by Núria Julià)
Police officers escort citizens away from the center of Barcelona after the attacks on August 17 (by Núria Julià) / ACN

ACN | Barcelona

February 20, 2018 04:57 PM

In collaboration with the Catalan Mossos d’Esquadra and Spanish Guardia Civil Police, this Tuesday French law enforcement arrested three individuals for suspected ties to the August 17 Barcelona and Cambrils terror attacks, according to the Ministry of Interior.

The three who are in custody have connections to the Driss Oukabir, who is currently in prison for allegedly belonging to the same terrorist cell that perpetrated the attacks that left 16 people dead and hundreds injured. The arrests were made in the Occitan departments of Gard and Tarn.

The Ministry of Interior emphasized that, following the terror attacks in Catalonia in 2017, one of the main investigations that remains active was opened to find possible connections of the terrorist cell members to third parties residing outside of Spain. The government body also stated that close collaboration with the French authorities and the Catalan and Spanish police forces is “key to correctly clarifying possible ties that this terrorist cell may have had abroad.”