Terror threat

Get Ready: Spain warns 800 jihadis ‘ready to strike’ across Europe

Earlier this year Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, head of counter-terrorism at Scotland Yard, said “significant numbers” of Islamist extremists were staying in Britain to plot attacks. The UK’s terror threat level remains severe, meaning an attack is “highly likely”.

Spanish police had tracked Khazzani while he lived in Madrid and Algeciras, and he is believed to have travelled to Syria in May this year. Belgian authorities have ruled out the idea he was acting as a “lone wolf” and are investigating his links to other extremists.

Meanwhile, French Police say he was using a newly activated phone on the day of the attack, thus covering any links to others. An official told Le Parisien: “This telephone had no numbers, no contacts. Using a mobile that is exclusively reserved for the day of the attack displays quite a professional character.”