Spain Orders Expulsion of Moroccan Imam Accused of Radicalizing Youth

The Reus court decided on Friday to transfer the activist Mohamed Said Badaoui to the Foreigners Detention Center (CIE) in Barcelona, pending his expulsion. The day before, the National Court ordered his expulsion due to his radical statements and his alleged links with terrorists. Mohamed Badaoui, president of the Association for the Defense of the Muslim Community of Reus, denied these accusations after his arrest in August by the national police.

The National Court refused to stay the expulsion, arguing that the expulsion order issued by the Secretary of State is based on the complaint of the Commissioner General for Police Information which "reveals the ideological radicalism of the accused" and "indoctrination in his community with the dissemination of pro-jihadist postulates". The Moroccan is also accused of contributing, through his speeches, to the rise of radicalism in the province of Tarragona.

In the police report, the activist is accused of indoctrinating mainly "vulnerable and manipulable" groups, particularly unaccompanied Moroccan minors. For all these reasons, the National Court approved the expulsion of Mohamed Badaoui, considering that he is a threat to national security and can harm relations between Spain and other countries.