Italian Police Arrest Moroccan Man Suspected of Plotting to Attack Milan Synagogue

Italian anti-terrorist police have arrested a 20-year-old Moroccan man who was allegedly plotting an attack on a Milan synagogue.

The suspect had maps relating to the synagogue’s security arrangements on his computer, according to Reuters.

BBC reported that the suspect, who has lived in Italy for 14 years, was apparently arrested in the city of Brescia, about 60 miles east of Milan, early Thursday morning.

Claudio Galzerano, the chief of Italy's police anti-terrorism unit, told BBC the arrest was a result of monitoring of the Internet that we've been doing for a while on a radical Islamic website.”

He added that the suspect maintained a Facebook account which included instructions and manuals for explosive devices.

If a normal person had done this, I would be worried, Galzerano said. If a jihadist does it, I'm a hundred times more worried.

Italy’s Interior Minister Anna Maria Cancellieri said the government hasn't issued a terror alert, but added the Milan plot is being taken “very seriously.”

Concurrently, London police also arrested a 40-year-old woman who's believed to have been in communication with the Moroccan, although it's unclear if she had any direct link to the Milan conspiracy.

Scotland Yard said the woman was detained on suspicion that she collected information useful to terrorism.

Jews have lived in Italy for more than 2,000 years; however, according to the Jewish Virtual Library, less than 30,000 currently reside in Italy, accounting for 0.05 percent of the total population.