Spain bans Dutch man for 10 years over alleged ties to jihadist network
A 37-year-old man from Doetinchem has been banned from entering Spain for 10 years. Spanish authorities say the man poses a “real and serious threat to national security” because of alleged ties to a jihadist network from Arnhem. The man denies any involvement in terrorist activities, De Telegraaf reports.
A Spanish judge issued the ruling after the man was arrested in July 2023 at a hotel in the Spanish city of Burgos.
The man had traveled from the Netherlands to Morocco in the summer of 2023 to visit family and stayed overnight in Burgos while in transit. He was arrested there, and Spanish authorities initiated deportation proceedings the following day.
According to De Telegraaf, authorities link the man to the so-called Arnhem terror group, a jihadist-inspired cell dismantled by Dutch police in 2018. The group sent fighters to Syria and allegedly planned attacks in the Netherlands. Its members were sentenced to lengthy prison terms in June 2022.
The group, active since 2013, consisted of Dutch nationals of various backgrounds and maintained connections with individuals in Islamic and jihadist networks. The cell was partially dismantled in raids in Arnhem and Weert, where seven members were arrested.
New members—including, according to Spanish authorities, the 37-year-old man from Doetinchem—were later recruited from the families of former members and from the group’s broader network.
Although the man from Doetinchem has never been convicted, Spanish authorities said their decision was based on what they described as the “real, current, and sufficiently serious” threat he allegedly posed to national security. The man appealed the 10-year ban.
He argued that no formal case file existed and submitted documents, including letters from Arnhem Mayor Ahmed Marcouch and Tilburg Mayor Theo Weterings, a certificate of good conduct, pay slips, and a rental contract.
According to El Confidencial, the Spanish judge acknowledged the documents but ruled that they did not outweigh the Ministry of the Interior's assessment. The court upheld the ban.
Spanish authorities described the group’s plans as complex and professional, involving attacks using vehicles loaded with explosives, weapons, and homemade bombs at crowded public events.
