Anti-terrorism drill on the high seas near the Alicante cruise terminal

On Friday morning, May 23rd, the National Police and Navy conducted anti-terrorism training in Alicante. The Special Operations Group (GEO) conducted an assault operation to apprehend three members of an Islamist cell that had stolen a fishing boat on the high seas and was carrying explosives. The attack also resulted in the arrest of another terrorist from the same organisation, who was on a cruise ship and had carried out an attack on tourists who had recently disembarked. Dozens of guests on an MSC cruise liner anchored in Alicante were able to watch part of the drill live, amid laughs and a brief fright.

The drill is part of the MARSEC-25 maritime security exercise, which is intended to test the inter-institutional protocols for joint action between the Navy and the National Police in response to terrorist-related security incidents in the maritime and port environment, as well as the effectiveness of the Port of Alicante’s security measures.

The exercise was explained by the Alicante naval commander, Joaquín Vegara, and the provincial chief commissioner, Manuel Lafuente, on board the maritime action vessel “Audaz.” The practice was attended by approximately 80 Navy troops and fifty police officers from various units.

Two scenarios

The drill included two scenarios: explosives at sea and a casualty incident at a cruise ship’s disembarkation location. Both instances are related, and the simulation opens with an investigation by the National Police Intelligence Brigade, which uncovers the plans of a terrorist cell to assault a Navy ship during an open day at the port of Alicante.

A terrorist is a passenger on a tourist cruise ship visiting Alicante. A warning is received about the kidnapping of a fishing boat by three terrorists carrying an explosive device, which they place on the bow and head towards the Alicante port with the purpose of committing an assault. At that point, the National Police request the Navy’s assistance, and a team of GEO agents is deployed aboard the vessel “Audaz” to carry out an assault on the fishing boat—simulated by the patrol boat “Formentor”—to liberate the hostages and apprehend the three terrorists.

This assault took place eight miles from the Alicante harbour and was made even more difficult by heavy rain, but the naval commander claimed it was “very fluid” and completed in less than five minutes.

While the theft was going place on the high seas, a huge casualty incident happened at the cruise liner terminal. The terrorist, disguised as a tourist on the cruise ship, panicked when he couldn’t reach his fellow passengers on the fishing boat and used the passengers’ disembarkation to carry out an indiscriminate knife attack on many individuals while chanting “Allah is great.”

The terrorist was apprehended by officials from the Police Prevention and Reaction Unit (UPR) after killing two persons. The suspect was handcuffed and taken away from the scene, and the Forensic Police conducted a visual assessment of the attack site, while the Dog Handler Unit searched for potential explosives.

After the fishing vessel was attacked and released, the “Audaz” sailed to the port of Alicante, where the GEOs disembarked the three terrorists and transported them to the Alicante Provincial Police Station. Before landing in port, the TEDAX specialists deactivated an explosive device on the Navy vessel.

This exercise enables the synchronisation of several specific action plans of organisations and authorities with jurisdiction in maritime security, particularly among the National Police, the Alicante Port Authority, which activates its security plan, and the Navy.