Spain arrests five terror suspects
(CNN) -- Acting on a dramatic indictment of terror-related suspects, Spanish authorities arrested five people allegedly linked to al Qaeda, national police said Thursday.
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Baltasar Garzon, an investigating magistrate issued a 700-page indictment Wednesday of 35 people, including al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Eight have been linked to the September 11, 2001, terror attacks.
The five who were arrested Thursday were listed in the indictment.
National police said a Moroccan named Saddik Merizak was arrested in Alicante. Investigators learned of his identity from a detainee at Guantanamo Bay -- Ahmed Adberrahaman.
The others were Syrian. Two brothers, Hamad and Waheed Koshati Kelani, were arrested in Madrid. Hamad Husein Husein was arrested in Granada and Hassan Al Husein was arrested in Alfacar.
There was no information immediately available on the charges these five are facing.
The 35 people named in the indictment also include Al-Jazeera correspondent Tayseer Alouni, who was arrested earlier this month. He is not linked in the indictment to the Sept. 11 terror attacks, but to membership in the Spanish branch of al Qaeda, a court official said in a phone interview.
Spain, along with Germany, has been regarded as a key staging ground for the Sept. 11 attacks. Accused ringleader and suicide pilot Mohamed Atta visited Spain in July 2001 and is believed to have held a planning meeting with other participants there.
About 40 Islamic extremist suspects have been arrested in Spain since the terror attacks on the United States, although some were released for lack of evidence and others have been released on bail. None has faced trial.
