Rabat, Dec 4 (IANS): The Moroccan security services on Wednesday dismantled in coordination with the Spanish police a terrorist cell linked to the Islamic State (IS) militant group, and arrested four suspects.

"This security operation led to the arrest of three people who were operating in the region of Farkhana and Beni Nsar (near the northern city of Nador), including the brother of a fighter present in Iraq and Syria region," said a statement of the Central Bureau of Judicial Investigation, Morocco's intelligence bureau.

The cell's leader was arrested simultaneously in the suburbs of Madrid, Spain, the statement added.

Initial investigations revealed that the cell's members, aged between 24 and 39, adhered to propaganda campaigns praising IS bloody acts, while spreading calls for retaliation for the death of the so-called "caliph" of this terrorist organization.

The operation led to the seizure of electronic devices, mobile phones, hoods as well as books and manuscripts promoting extremist ideology.