Abdelbaki Es Satty

Abdelbaki Es Satty
Born1973
Morocco
Died16 August 2017 (aged 44)
Alcanar, Spain
Cause of deathAccidental death from explosion
NationalityMoroccan
Known forPlanning the 2017 Barcelona attacks

Abdelbaki Es Satty (Arabic: عبدالباقي إس ستي; 1973 – 16 August 2017) was a Moroccan imam in Ripoll, Spain.[1][2][3] On 21 August, he was confirmed to have died in an accidental explosion in Alcanar on 16 August, which began the 2017 Barcelona attacks.[4][5] Satty is believed to have been the mastermind of the planned attacks and to have radicalised the twelve terrorists responsible into the Takfir wal-Hijra sect, which allows adherents to copy typically "Western" behaviour often forbidden in Islam in order to conceal their radicalisation and terror plans.[6] However, he was also serving as an informant to Spain's intelligence agency, CNI.[7]

  1. ^ Musseau, François (24 August 2017). "In Ripoll, the mysteries of the two-faced imam". Libération (in French). Retrieved 25 August 2017. Abdelbaki Es Satty, arrived in Spain from his native Morocco in 2002
  2. ^ Alsedo, Quico; Herraíz, Pablo (31 August 2017). "Shadows and errors in the investigation of the attacks of Barcelona and Cambrils". El Mundo (in Spanish). Madrid: Unidad Editorial. Retrieved 25 August 2017. Documentation of Es Satty (Morocco, 1973), who had arrived in Spain in 2002, was found in 2006
  3. ^ Oller, Alex; Wilson, Joseph; Hinnant, Lori. "Manhunt Continues for Barcelona Driver and Missing Moroccan Imam". Time. Archived from the original on 19 August 2017. Retrieved 19 August 2017.
  4. ^ Cockburn, Harry (21 August 2017). "Barcelona attack: Imam at centre of investigation among dead in house explosion". Independent. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
  5. ^ "Barcelona attack: Suspected van driver shot dead by police". BBC News. BBC. 21 August 2017. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
  6. ^ Irujo, José María (26 August 2017). "El imán aleccionó a los terroristas en la corriente más clandestina del salafismo". El Pais (in Spanish). Madrid: Prisa. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  7. ^ "Barcelona terror attack leader was an informer for Spanish intelligence till the end". Barcelona: El Nacional. 16 July 2019.