Swiss, French police arrest 10 after anti-terrorism raids

The raids were part of an investigation that began in June 2016. The arrests were made amid suspicion over an attack plot.

Police officers patrol in front of the Eiffel Tower on November 1, 2017 in Paris, as France officially ended the state of emergency.
AFP

Police officers patrol in front of the Eiffel Tower on November 1, 2017 in Paris, as France officially ended the state of emergency.

A Swiss man and a Colombian woman were among ten people arrested in Switzerland and France on Tuesday in raids against people suspected of breaking laws banning Al Qaeda and Daesh, the Swiss attorney general's office (OAG) said.

The man, a 27-year-old with Swiss nationality, was swept up in arrests in France, while the 23-year-old Colombian woman was detained in Switzerland in the investigation that began in June 2016, the OAG said, describing the probe as a coordinated "counter-terrorism" operation.

Searches are still underway in the Paris suburbs and in southeastern France.

Suspicious activity

The operations were part of an investigation focused on suspicious activity by a person in Switzerland using the Telegram network, according to a French judicial official.

Counterterrorism investigators detained nine people in France and one in Switzerland in operations aimed at clarifying details of a suspected plot, the official said. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation, would not provide details about their identities.

The Swiss-based chief suspect had communicated with people in France on social networks about unspecified violent acts, the official said. A French security official said the suspected plot did not appear to be fully developed but authorities acted Tuesday out of concern that the group was moving towards action.

Among towns targeted in the operation were Aix-en-Provence in southern France and Menton on the Mediterranean coast as well as Paris suburbs, according to the security official.

The operation comes days after a new counterterrorism law came into effect to replace a state of emergency that had been in place since deadly attacks in Paris two years ago.

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