Ceuta weapons cache marks step change in Spain terror threat

A USB stick found alongside an arms cache in Ceuta contained a list of potential targets inside the Spanish enclave, marking a ‘qualitative leap’ in the terror threat to Spain, investigators said yesterday.

This is the first time a weapons stash belonging to Islamic State has been found on Spanish territory.

Guardia Civil officers believe the weapons may be linked to “an old terror cell” whose members may already be under arrest,

But they also warned the guns represented hard evidence of initial planning for an attack, pointing to capability as well as intent.

“This find represents a qualitative leap in relation to the war on jihadi terrorism in Spain,” the Spanish Ministry of the Interior said in a statement yesterday.

“It is the first case in which we have objectively detected firm evidence of clandestine logistical and weapons structures.”

The investigation is now focused on identifying persons who may be linked to the cache and who, officers believe, will most likely have links within extremist circles inside Ceuta itself.

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