Sal©: The scientific expertise conducted following the dismantling in several Moroccan cities of a terrorist cell linked to the “Daesh” organization confirmed that the preparation of this terrorist act had reached “a very advanced stage”, Prefect of Police Abderrahmane El Yousfi Alaoui said Monday in Sal©. The four improvised explosive devices, namely the pressure cooker and the gas cylinders submitted for expertise, were explosive devices ready to be used and could be operated remotely, explained El Yousfi Alaoui, head of the technical and risk management division at the National Security’s Institute of Forensic Sciences, at a press briefing organized by the Central Bureau of Judicial Investigation (BCIJ).
According to Agence Marocaine De Presse, in order to conduct the technical and scientific expertise needed to shed light on the judicial investigation and criminal justice, the scientific and technical services under the Institute have received several evidences under judicial seal, classified in two categories. The first category relates to the 25 judicial seals received by the Institute on 19/02/2025, comprising chemical substances and suspicious material. These include a pressure cooker containing chemical substances, modified gas cylinders filled with suspect chemical powders and metal nails, plastic bags with various powders, plastic bottles, a metal container with liquid substances, and miscellaneous equipment such as PVC pipes and welding materials.
Analyses and forensic tests conducted on these materials by the Institute of Forensic Sciences revealed that they were chemicals used in the preparation and manufacture of improvised explosive devices, such as ammonium nitrate and TATP-based explosive devices. A pressure cooker and modified gas bottles were used as containers for these explosive chemicals. Each bottle was filled with nails, which were used as splinters to cause more deaths and injuries, as well as significant material damage.
PVC pipes, six per unit, were attached to the sides of these containers in order to fill them with explosives, with the criminal intent of causing the greatest number of casualties and significant material damage. Cell phones were attached to these improvised explosive devices and connected by electric wires to the contents of these containers in order to operate them remotely.
With regard to the chemical substances used in IEDs, El Yousfi Alaoui pointed out that these products are primarily intended for civilian use in various fields. ‘Unfortunately, they can sometimes be misused to criminal, terrorist or subversive ends, as in this case and others, was foiled thanks to the vigilance and watchfulness of the intelligence services of the General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance (DGST)’, he said.
The second category includes the 14 judicially sealed pieces of evidence received by the Institute of Forensic Sciences on 22/05/2025, which include several firearms and ammunition. These consist of two Kalashnikovs, two shotguns, ten pistols, and 73 cartridges of various calibers. The preliminary technical examination carried out on these weapons and ammunition concluded that they are firearms of different types and uses, ranging from weapons of war to those intended for security and military use or hunting.
El Yousfi Alaoui added that the expert’s report concluded that all these firearms were in good working order. Markings on all these firearms had been removed for criminal purposes, making it difficult for the security services to determine their origin and trace their chain of possession internationally. Technical expertise on these firearms is ongoing, particularly with regard to the display of their markings, the aim being to check them against Interpol databases and determine their chain of possession and possible international criminal history.