Police seize 13 Madrid suspects

Spanish police have arrested 13 more people in connection with the Madrid train bombings that claimed 191 lives.

BBC News  1 April, 2005

Police say 12 people were arrested when more than 100 officers took part in raids in and around Madrid, in an operation lasting several hours.

They detained a number of Moroccans, Syrians and other suspects of North African and Middle Eastern origin. A 13th suspect was seized later.

Meanwhile, Belgium has extradited a Moroccan suspect to Spain.

Spanish prosecutors suspect Youssef Belhadj of being al-Qaeda’s European spokesman, who claimed responsibility for the 11 March 2004 train bombings in a videotape.

Mr Belhadj denies involvement in the attacks.

Four of those arrested on Friday were believed to have links to Mr Belhadj, government and police sources said.

Another detainee was thought to have been the personal assistant of the alleged mastermind of the attacks, a Tunisian named Serhane Ben Abdelmajid Fakhet.

"The Tunisian" was among seven suspects who died when they blew themselves up during a police raid on the Madrid suburb of Leganes last April.

More than 70 people have been arrested in the course of the investigations into the attacks, which have been blamed on Islamic radicals.