Arrests in Belgium and Italy point to wide jihadi network
LONDON – Belgian media reported that authorities have arrested the man they believe was the third suspect in last week’s deadly attacks in Brussels, as an Algerian man was detained in Italy for providing false papers to the attackers.
Belgium’s French-language Le Soir named the man arrested in Brussels as Faycal Cheffou, reportedly a freelance television journalist.
Reports said he was arrested in raids on Thursday, two days after the Brussels attacks that killed 31 people and wounded some 300 others.
He is seen in video footage with the two suicide bombers that carried out the Brussels airport attacks, which happened shortly before another bombing at a nearby metro station.
Meanwhile, Italian police arrested an Algerian man who they say was part of a network that produced fake documents used by the Brussels and Paris attackers.
Italy’s ANSA news agency identified the suspect as Djamal Eddine Ouali, who was arrested in the southwestern city of Salerno on a European arrest warrant issued by Belgian authorities.
The agency said he was part of a “a criminal organization dedicated to document fraud and illegal immigration.”
Ouali’s name reportedly emerged following raids in Brussels last October, where police discovered thousands of pieces of evidence related to false identity papers.
They included false documents and photographs belonging to the network that was allegedly involved in the Brussels and Paris attacks.
They were named as Soufiane Kayal, alias Najim Laachroui, identified as one of the two suicide bombers involved in last week’s airport attack in Brussels.
False papers also were found for Samir Bouzid, alias Mohammed Belkaid, the man killed in a raid this month that led to the capture in Belgium of Salah Abdeslam, the surviving suspect of the November 13 Paris attacks that killed 130 people.
The false papers also included documents for Yassine Baghli, the alias used by Abdeslam.
Belgium’s French-language Le Soir named the man arrested in Brussels as Faycal Cheffou, reportedly a freelance television journalist.
Reports said he was arrested in raids on Thursday, two days after the Brussels attacks that killed 31 people and wounded some 300 others.
He is seen in video footage with the two suicide bombers that carried out the Brussels airport attacks, which happened shortly before another bombing at a nearby metro station.
Meanwhile, Italian police arrested an Algerian man who they say was part of a network that produced fake documents used by the Brussels and Paris attackers.
Italy’s ANSA news agency identified the suspect as Djamal Eddine Ouali, who was arrested in the southwestern city of Salerno on a European arrest warrant issued by Belgian authorities.
The agency said he was part of a “a criminal organization dedicated to document fraud and illegal immigration.”
Ouali’s name reportedly emerged following raids in Brussels last October, where police discovered thousands of pieces of evidence related to false identity papers.
They included false documents and photographs belonging to the network that was allegedly involved in the Brussels and Paris attacks.
They were named as Soufiane Kayal, alias Najim Laachroui, identified as one of the two suicide bombers involved in last week’s airport attack in Brussels.
False papers also were found for Samir Bouzid, alias Mohammed Belkaid, the man killed in a raid this month that led to the capture in Belgium of Salah Abdeslam, the surviving suspect of the November 13 Paris attacks that killed 130 people.
The false papers also included documents for Yassine Baghli, the alias used by Abdeslam.