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Scandinavian Hikers Murdered by ISIS Terrorists Flown Back From Morocco

The remote village of Imlil nestled on the slopes of the Atlas mountains in Morocco, Thursday Dec. 20, 2018, about 10 Km (six miles) from the spot where the bodies of two Scandinavian women were found. (Terje Bendiksby / NTB scanpix via AP)
The remote village of Imlil nestled on the slopes of the Atlas mountains in Morocco, Thursday Dec. 20, 2018, about 10 Km (six miles) from the spot where the bodies of two Scandinavian women were found. (Terje Bendiksby / NTB scanpix via AP)
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Scandinavian Hikers Murdered by ISIS Terrorists Flown Back From Morocco

The remote village of Imlil nestled on the slopes of the Atlas mountains in Morocco, Thursday Dec. 20, 2018, about 10 Km (six miles) from the spot where the bodies of two Scandinavian women were found. (Terje Bendiksby / NTB scanpix via AP)
The remote village of Imlil nestled on the slopes of the Atlas mountains in Morocco, Thursday Dec. 20, 2018, about 10 Km (six miles) from the spot where the bodies of two Scandinavian women were found. (Terje Bendiksby / NTB scanpix via AP)

The bodies of two women from Denmark and Norway murdered by suspected jihadists while hiking in the High Atlas mountains in Morocco were flown back to Scandinavia on Friday.

The remains of Danish student Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, 24, and 28-year-old Norwegian Maren Ueland were put on a plane that left Casablanca for the Danish capital, a police spokesman said.

Moroccan authorities said Thursday that four suspects arrested following the murder of the two tourists had pledged allegiance to the ISIS terrorist group.

The bodies of the two women were found Monday after they had pitched their tent at an isolated mountain site two hours' walk from the tourist village of Imlil.

One of them was beheaded, according to a source close to the investigation.

Imlil is a starting point for trekking and climbing tours of Mount Toubkal, which at 4,167 meters is the highest summit in North Africa.

Hours after the grisly discovery authorities announced the arrest of a first suspect and later said he belonged to an "extremist" group, while the three other suspects were arrested on Thursday.

Moroccan investigators are probing a link to extremism after a video emerged showing the suspects "pledging allegiance" to ISIS, the Rabat prosecutor has said.

Authorities in Morocco consider the killings a terrorist act.

Authorities were working to determine the authenticity of a video posted on social media networks allegedly showing the murder of one of the tourists, according to the prosecutor.

Norway's National Criminal Investigation Service (NCIS) has also been investigating the footage circulating on social media.

"At this point, there is no tangible evidence that the video is not authentic," the agency said Friday.

The NCIS said it was trying to map the women's activities before their departure for the village of Imlil.

All four suspects were arrested in Marrakesh, an hour away from the scene of the murder.

Younes Ouaziad, 27, lived with his parents in the working-class Al-Azzouzia neighborhood.

His family and neighbors said Friday they were "in shock".

"He was a boy without any history, private. There was nothing to suggest he could do something like that," 35-year-old Abdelaati, a vegetable seller in the neighborhood, told AFP.

The murders have prompted condemnation from authorities in Denmark and Norway.

Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen denounced what he called a "beastly crime".

Norway's Prime Minister Erna Solberg condemned what she called a "brutal and meaningless attack on innocents".

Moroccan government spokesman Mustapha Khalfi described the killings as a "terrorist act" while Prime Minister Saad Eddine El Othmani said it was a "stab in the back of Morocco and Moroccans".

Tourism is a cornerstone of Morocco's economy, accounting for 10 percent of national income. The country is generally considered safe for tourists but it has been routing out extremists for years.

Morocco has been spared militant attacks since 2011, when a bomb attack on a cafe in Marrakesh's famed Jamaa El Fna Square killed 17 people, most of them European tourists.

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World

Trump Names Louisiana Governor as Greenland Special Envoy, Prompting Danish Alarm 

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry speaks to reporters at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, La., Sept. 3, 2025. (AP)
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry speaks to reporters at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, La., Sept. 3, 2025. (AP)
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Trump Names Louisiana Governor as Greenland Special Envoy, Prompting Danish Alarm 

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry speaks to reporters at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, La., Sept. 3, 2025. (AP)
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry speaks to reporters at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, La., Sept. 3, 2025. (AP)

US President Donald Trump named Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry on Sunday as his special envoy to Greenland, reigniting Danish and Greenlandic alarm over Washington's plans for the vast, mineral-rich Arctic island. 

Trump has said several times over the years that Greenland, a Danish territory that is now largely self-governing, should become part of the US, citing security reasons and an interest in the island's mineral resources. Landry has praised the idea. 

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said on Monday he would summon the US ambassador to Copenhagen, saying he had been particularly upset by Landry's support for Trump's aim of making Greenland part of the United States. Greenland's prime minister reiterated ‌that the island ‌would decide its own future. 

"Jeff understands how essential Greenland is ‌to ⁠our National Security, and ‌will strongly advance our Country’s Interests for the Safety, Security, and Survival of our Allies, and indeed, the World," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Sunday. 

The White House did not respond immediately to requests for comment. 

Landry, who took office as Louisiana governor in January 2024, thanked Trump on X, saying: "It’s an honor to serve ... in this volunteer position to make Greenland a part of the US. This in no way affects my position as Governor of Louisiana!" 

DANISH CONSTERNATION 

Greenland ⁠and Denmark have consistently rejected that idea. 

Lokke Rasmussen told Denmark's TV 2: "I am deeply upset by this appointment of a ‌special envoy. And I am particularly upset by his statements, ‍which we find completely unacceptable." 

Earlier, in ‍an emailed statement to Reuters, Lokke Rasmussen said: "We insist that everyone – including the US – must show ‍respect for the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark." 

Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said in a post on Facebook: "We have woken up again to a new announcement from the US president. This may sound big, but it does not change anything for us. We decide our own future." 

Aaja Chemnitz, a Greenlandic member of the Danish parliament, said the appointment of a US envoy was not in itself a problem. 

"The problem is that he's been given the ⁠task of taking over Greenland or making Greenland part of the United States, and there's no desire for that in Greenland," Chemnitz told Reuters. 

"There is a desire to respect the future that a majority in Greenland wants, namely to remain their own country and develop their independence over time." 

Seeking to mitigate tensions with the Trump administration over the past year, Denmark, a NATO ally of the United States, has focused on strengthening Greenland's defense to address US criticisms about inadequate security. 

Greenland, a former Danish colony and home to only around 57,000 people, has held the right to declare independence from Denmark since 2009. 

Its economy relies heavily on fishing and subsidies from Copenhagen, and the island sits strategically along the shortest route between Europe and North America, a vital location for the US ‌ballistic missile defense system. 

World

Israeli FM Urges Jews to Move to Israel a Week After Sydney Attack 

10 July 2025, Austria, Vienna: Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar takes part in a press conference at the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria. (dpa)
10 July 2025, Austria, Vienna: Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar takes part in a press conference at the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria. (dpa)
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Israeli FM Urges Jews to Move to Israel a Week After Sydney Attack 

10 July 2025, Austria, Vienna: Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar takes part in a press conference at the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria. (dpa)
10 July 2025, Austria, Vienna: Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar takes part in a press conference at the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria. (dpa)

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called on Sunday for Jews in Western countries to move to Israel to escape rising antisemitism, one week after 15 were shot dead at a Jewish event in Sydney.

"Jews have the right to live in safety everywhere. But we see and fully understand what is happening, and we have a certain historical experience. Today, Jews are being hunted across the world," Saar said at a public candle lighting marking the last day of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah.

"Today I call on Jews in England, Jews in France, Jews in Australia, Jews in Canada, Jews in Belgium: come to the Land of Israel! Come home!" Saar said at the ceremony, held with leaders of Jewish communities and organizations worldwide.

Since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, sparked by Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Israeli leaders have repeatedly denounced a surge in antisemitism in Western countries and accused their governments of failing to curb it.

Australian authorities have said the December 14 attack on a Hanukkah event on Sydney's Bondi Beach was inspired by the ideology of the ISIS extremist group.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Western governments to better protect their Jewish citizens.

"I demand that Western governments do what is necessary to fight antisemitism and provide the required safety and security for Jewish communities worldwide," Netanyahu said in a video address.

In October, Saar accused British authorities of failing to take action to curb a "toxic wave of antisemitism" following an attack outside a Manchester synagogue on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, in which two people were killed and four wounded.

According to Israel's 1950 "Law of Return", any Jewish person in the world is entitled to settle in Israel (a process known in Hebrew as aliyah, or "ascent") and acquire Israeli citizenship. The law also applies to individuals who have at least one Jewish grandparent.

World

Israel Says it Is Facing an ‘Existential Threat’ as Iran Builds up its Military Capacities  

Israeli defenses intercept Iranian missiles over Tel Aviv on June 22. (AFP)
Israeli defenses intercept Iranian missiles over Tel Aviv on June 22. (AFP)
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Israel Says it Is Facing an ‘Existential Threat’ as Iran Builds up its Military Capacities  

Israeli defenses intercept Iranian missiles over Tel Aviv on June 22. (AFP)
Israeli defenses intercept Iranian missiles over Tel Aviv on June 22. (AFP)

Iran is making “hysteric” efforts to produce up to 3,000 ballistic missiles per month, Israel's Maariv newspaper reported on Sunday.

“Although such missiles are considered old-fashioned, imprecise, and can be shot down before they reach their targets, the time they reach their targets is enough to cause serious damage,” the newspaper said quoting Israeli security sources.

In an article published in Maariv, writer Anna Persky said Iran is reviving its nuclear program and is resuming the production of ballistic missiles, but not yet its uranium enrichment.

Quoting Israeli security sources, she wrote: “There has been an ongoing movement in recent weeks around the nuclear reactors that were destroyed in the recent Israeli-US attacks on Iran.”

The sources stressed that the Israeli army’s new military doctrine is based on preemptive strikes to prevent threats before they materialize, but at the same time, they did not rule out a preemptive attack from Tehran.

Persky wrote that Iran is restoring facilities related to the production of ballistic missiles and nuclear facilities damaged by strikes during the 12-day war in June.

For Israel, Iran's nuclear program still remains a serious concern.

“Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to present the Iranian threat during his scheduled meeting with US President Donald Trump” on December 29. “He will try to figure out if Trump is willing to participate in a new war against Iran,” she said.

Persky wrote that Netanyahu will present to the US President with a number of alternatives, including an independent Israeli attack with limited US assistance, a joint strike or a full-scale US operation.

“At the meeting, the main issue will not be what Israel wants to do, but what the United States is willing to offer,” she noted.

In Israel, the “inevitability of a war with Iran” was the headline of all Israeli newspapers over the weekend.

“Iran ramps up missile tests and military drills, renews threats toward Israel,” wrote Yedioth Ahronoth in its headline on Sunday.

It said amid recent reports that Tehran is producing ballistic missiles at a rapid pace and in large quantities, Iran has returned to threatening Israel and showcasing its military capabilities, much as it did before the June war.

But Maariv said the war initiative will rather come from Israel, which perceives Iran’s nuclear program as an existential threat.

Israel is worried about missing the current opportunity. “Today, Iran is still in the midst of reconstruction, but tomorrow it will be more protected, more distributed, and its offensive capability will be more expensive and more dangerous,” Persky wrote.