2 held on terrorism charges in Italy

ROME, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Two people were arrested on terrorism charges in the northern Italian city of Milan on Tuesday. One of them is an Egyptian national and the other an Italian citizen of Egyptian origin, the Italian authorities said.

The two are charged with participating in a conspiracy to promote terrorism and with incitement to commit terrorism. Both were spotted for their activities on social media chat groups related to Islamic terrorism, the Interior Ministry said.

The suspects were allegedly very active in online propaganda in favor of the Islamic State (IS). They are accused of trying to recruit new affiliates and contributing financially to initiatives in favor of the IS, according to the Milan prosecutor's office that launched the operation.

There were no signs that the suspects were preparing for a terrorist act, but they had been on the police radar since August 2021, the Milan prosecutor told journalists.

Interviewed by state-run RAI radio, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said that the government had raised the security alert level across the country.

Tajani said there were currently no specific terrorism threats against Italy.