모로코서 북유럽 20대 여성 관광객 참수된 채 발견..."IS 테러 가능성" VIDEO;Morocco murders: agents investigate footage as terror fears mount

Morocco murders: agents investigate footage as terror fears mount

Three men held in Marrakech as suspicions grow that Islamists were behind killing of two Scandinavian women

Peter Beaumont

Thu 20 Dec 2018 14.02 GMT First published on Thu 20 Dec 2018 01.48 GMT

The village of Imlil, Morocco. The bodies of Maren Ueland and Louisa Vesterager Jespersen were found nearby. Photograph: Terje Bendiksby/EPA

모로코서 북유럽 20대 여성 관광객 2명 참수된 채 발견..."IS 테러 가능성" 노르웨이 덴마크 출신 모로코 남성 3명 추가 검거   북아프리카 모로코 경찰이 최근 북유럽 여성 관광객 2명의 피살사건 용의자들을 체포해 테러 여부를 조사 중이다. 모로코 경찰은 20일(현지시간) 모로코 중부 아틀라스산맥에서 노르웨이와 덴마크에서 온 여성 관광객 2명이 살해된 사건과 관련해 남성 3명을 추가로 검거했다고 dpa통신, AP 등이 보도했다. 모로코 수사당국은 "이 범죄가 테러 동기에 의해 저질러졌을 개연성을 조사하고 있다"며 지금까지 발견된 증거는 테러를 뒷받침한다고 밝혔다. 앞서 모로코 경찰은 지난 18일 다른 용의자 1명을 체포했고 이 용의자가 과격단체 조직원이라고 발표했다. 라르스 뢰케 라스무센 덴마크 총리도 "이번 살인은 정치적 동기에 의한 테러로 생각할 수 있다"며 "우리 가치와 맞서는 암흑의 세력이 아직 존재한다. 우리는 굴복해서는 안 된다"고 밝혔다. 덴마크 정보당국은 모로코 정부의 초기 수사 결과를 토대로 이번 사건이 이슬람 원리주의 테러조직 '이슬람국가'(IS)와 연관됐을 수 있다고 밝혔다. 지난 17일 아틀라스산맥의 투브칼산에서 잔인하게 훼손된 여성 시신 2구가 발견됐고 사망자는 덴마크인 루이자 베스테라거 예스페르센(24)과 노르웨이인 마렌 우에랜드(28)로 파악됐다. AFP보도에 따르면 시신 두 구 중 한 구는 목에 자상을 입은 채로 발견됐고 다른 한 구는 목이 잘려진 채로 발견됐다. 투브칼산은 정상이 해발 4천167ｍ로 북아프리카에서 가장 높은 산이며 시신이 발견된 곳은 등산 출발지로 유명한 관광촌 '이믈리'에서 약 10㎞ 떨어져 있다. AP는 모로코가 이번 사건으로 충격에 빠졌다고 전했다. 특히 폭스뉴스에 따르면 두 여성이 살해당하는 동영상이 모로코 SNS상에 유통되고 있어 충격을 더 하고 있다.  모로코는 그동안 외국인 관광객들에게 안전한 국가로 인식됐고 최근 수년 동안 이슬람 원리주의 세력을 제거하는 데 노력했다. 그동안 IS에 가담한 모로코인은 1,000여명으로 추정된다. 조준경 기자 calebcao@pennmike.com  펜앤드마이크 펜앤드마이크(http://www.pennmike.com)

edited by kcontents

Danish intelligence services are investigating a video circulating on social media they believe could show the murder of two Scandinavian women killed in Morocco as fears mount that the tourists were killed by extremists linked to Islamic State.

The Danish intelligence service, the PET, at first said it had authenticated the video but later rowed back, saying it was still being “examined”. The latest statement came as Moroccan authorities arrested three more suspects over the killings in the Atlas mountains, which have sent shockwaves through a popular tourist destination that has been relatively untouched by Islamist attacks.

The Moroccan government spokesman, Mustapha El Khalfi, described the killings as a “criminal and terrorist act”.

Investigators have released pictures of the three fugitives, who were identified as Rachid Afatti, Ouaziad Younes and Ejjoud Abdessamad. The three men were arrested in Marrakech as they tried to board a bus to the popular tourist resort of Agadir, according to a national security spokesman, Boubker Sabik, who said police were investigating whether they had terrorist affiliations.

Investigators were in the process of “verifying the terrorist motive, which is supported by the evidence and the findings of inquiries”, the central judicial investigations office said.

The men were seized with three long machete-like knives, a shorter blade, a slingshot and several mobile phones. Another suspect arrested in Marrakech on Tuesday had affiliations to an extremist group, Moroccan authorities said, and had apparently identified the others involved.

Pictures of the three men arrested on the bus also appear to show at least one man bearing a striking similarity to one of four individuals who had recently posted on social media declaring his allegiance to Isis while posing under the group’s flag.

Composite image of the three arrested men, Rachid Afatti, left, Ouaziad Younes, centre, and Ejjoud Abdessamad. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

The discovery of machetes with handles wrapped with electrical tape under the seats of the bus will raise questions of whether they planned a second assault, perhaps in Agadir.

The bodies of Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, 24, from Denmark, and Maren Ueland, 28, from Norway, were found on Monday in an isolated area near Imlil, which is on the route to Toubkal, north Africa’s highest peak and a popular hiking destination.

According to some local media reports the killers had camped near their victims, about four miles’ hike from the nearest town, and fled the scene after the attack. The bodies were found on Monday by two French women who were hiking near the remote spot where Jespersen and Ueland had pitched their tent.

Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, left, and Maren Ueland. Photograph: vg

“We took a picture to show the police where we found them and went down again,” one of the witnesses told the Norwegian tabloid VG. “We warned everyone we saw [in the nearby town of] Imlil from going there. I did not want more to see what we had seen.”

In an earlier statement PET said Moroccan authorities had indicated that the killings may be related to Isis. That speculation was fuelled by claims on Morocco’s 2M television network that investigators had linked the first of the four people arrested over the murder to the terror group.

Moroccan television broadcast an interview with the brother of one of the three men arrested on the bus who suggested his sibling had been “brainwashed” by militants.

“He had no education and was brainwashed,” said the brother adding that his sibling had disappeared a week ago. “He was a normal guy, but was radicalised. What happened has nothing to do with Islam.”

The latest claims over the motive came as fresh details emerged of the two women’s last days. They had stayed in a hostel where they encountered a local mountain guide, Rachid Imerhade, who said he had cautioned them about camping alone on their planned ascent of the Toubkal mountain.

Moroccan media outlets reported that investigators also had video surveillance footage showing the suspects putting up a tent near the victims’ tent and leaving the area after the killings.

The murders can be considered “politically motivated and thus an act of terror”, the Danish prime minister, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, said on Thursday. He said “there are still dark forces that want to fight our values” and “we must not give in”.

In Norway, the prime minister, Erna Solberg, said terrorism “is not the only lead that is being investigated in Morocco” but said the case still “emphasises the importance of combating violent extremism”.

Jespersen had posted on Facebook about her upcoming trip before leaving. “Dear friends, I’m going to Morocco in December. Any of you guys who’s around by then or any mountain friends who knows something about Mount Toubkal?”

In the videos that have been circulating, a voice can reportedly be heard speaking of the “enemies of Allah” several times and referring to “revenge for our brothers in Hajin”, referring to the last stronghold of Isis in Syria, which fell a few days ago.

The two victims were friends from the University of South-Eastern Norway, where they were studying together. “What we know is that they were on a month-long, private holiday in Morocco. Our thoughts go to the families,” the university said.

The killings have prompted concerns about the impact on Morocco’s tourist sector, which accounts for 10% of national income, as the kingdom’s relative security has been a major selling point.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/20/morocco-killing-of-scandinavian-women-linked-to-militants-says-prosecutor

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