Italy arrests three suspected ISIS militants

Italian police on Wednesday announced the arrest of three men suspected of involvement in recruiting jihadists to fight in Syria and the promotion of Islamic extremism.

One of the three, a 20-year-old Italian with Moroccan roots, is suspected of being the author of a 64-page Italian-language document which outlines the goals and principles of the Islamic State group and has been circulated on the Internet and social networks.

The other two men are both Albanian nationals. One of them was arrested in Italy, one in Albania.

The arrests follow a two-year operation by anti-terrorism police operating out of the northern city of Brescia and were accompanied by a series of raids on properties in Lombardy, Piedmont and Tuscany, police said in a statement.

Italy has stepped up monitoring of suspected Islamic extremists following recent attacks in France and Denmark and threats by supporters of IS based in Libya to use the north African state as a platform for attacks on Italian territory.

Anti-terrorism chief Mario Papa told parliament last week that 17 arrests and 33 expulsion orders had been made since the terror attacks on Paris in early January.

Security officials believe at least 65 Italian nationals or residents are currently fighting in Syria.