FIVE DETAINED, WEAPONS AND ISIS FLAGS SEIZED IN OPERATION

SKOPJE, SEPTEMBER 29 /SRNA/ - Five people were arrested in Skopje and several automatic weapons and flags of the terrorist group Islamic State were seized in an operation targeting a radical group with alleged terrorist links.

Macedonian media reported that prosecutors were expected to release more information about the operation, carried out yesterday in the Skopje area against a radical group with alleged terrorist ties that also operated as an organized crime group involved in loan-sharking, illegal trade and violent activities. Among those arrested was a resident of the Čento neighborhood who had reportedly been monitored by security services for around 15 years because of his radical activities. Telma television reported that searches at more than 10 locations uncovered several automatic weapons, handguns, knives, ISIS flags and computers used for cryptocurrency mining. According to initial information, the operation involved the intelligence service, the National Security Agency and police, under the direction of a prosecutor from the Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime and Corruption. The Prosecutor's Office briefly confirmed yesterday that searches and questioning were still under way and said more information would be released once the operation was completed.