Spanish authorities have reportedly detected calls from jihadist groups urging attacks on police officers and demonstrators during ongoing protests in several European countries, including Portugal, Spain, France, and Italy. According to the Spanish daily El País, the country's Interior Ministry identified these messages on a website allegedly linked to the Islamic State (IS) group.
An internal document from the Spanish Cybersecurity Coordination Office reportedly contains messages encouraging militants to exploit mass demonstrations and street clashes to carry out attacks. The jihadists have provided practical instructions on how to execute these acts, explicitly calling for "martyrdom" through methods such as suicide bombings or vehicle-ramming attacks.
These protests, which have been ongoing for several weeks, peaked last weekend amid a wave of violence in France, where buildings including Limoges City Hall and the Lyon tourism office were set on fire and largely destroyed. Italy also experienced violent incidents, particularly arson attacks in Milan. In Spain and Portugal, daily protests and "camp-outs" in major cities such as Madrid, Lisbon, and Porto have been primarily driven by the housing crisis and the rising cost of living.
In response to the alert, Portugal's Internal Security System (SSI) stated it is "closely monitoring" the situation. In a response to the Portuguese news agency Lusa, the SSI confirmed that the Secretary-General is monitoring the developments within her remit and remains in constant liaison with the relevant authorities.
