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Moroccan police are investigating a video which reportedly shows the brutal murder of a Scandinavian backpacker.

Maren Ueland, 28, from Norway, and Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, 24, from Denmark, were discovered with cuts to their neck in the tourist village of Imlil.

The women were found in an isolated area on the way to North Africa's highest peak of Toubkal, officials said.

Horrific footage of one of the killings has been widely shared on social media in the country, according to reports.

Police are now attempting to verify whether the video is real.

One Twitter user claimed that a man in the video says: "This is revenge for our brothers in Haji in Syria (recently bombarded by the coalition)".

As well as: "Here are your enemy heads of God".

Investigators say terrorism was a motive behind their deaths and say one suspect belonged to a militant group.

(Image: Facebook) (Image: Facebook)

One man was arrested earlier this week and three others were arrested on Thursday morning.

Police also released pictures of three men they wanted to speak to in connection with the incident. But it is not clear whether it is the same men who have been arrested.

The first man, thought to be Moroccan, was arrested in Marrakesh. He has been dubbed an ‘extremist', Moroccan authorities have confirmed.

He was being held in custody "to determine the motive of the crime while investigations continue to arrest other individuals who have been identified and suspected of taking part in criminal acts", the central bureau of judicial investigation in Morocco said in a statement.

(Image: service-public.ma)

(Image: service-public.ma)

No organisation or group has come forward to claim the murders.

It is claimed an ID card was found at the scene of the murder.

The three men are said to have camped next to the tent belonging to the victims and were captured on camera fleeing the area in the early hours of the morning.

"We are working to bring before justice three other suspects on the run," said police spokesman Boubker Sabik.

The interior ministry said the women's bodies had been found with "signs of violence on their necks" that had been "caused by a cutting device".

Louisa's mum Helle Jespersen has told local media the family is completely "broken".

(Image: service-public.ma)

(Image: AFP/Getty Images)

She said: "She was always happy and positive," adding that her daughter saw the best in everyone.

Ms Jespersen said she hopes investigators find the 'culprit', but admitted she is not hopeful.

She spoke of the moment she was told about her daughter's death by police who turned up at her door.

"When I went out and saw that there were two officers, I knew what had happened. I broke down," she said.

(Image: Facebook) (Image: Facebook)

A post dated November 21 on Louisa's Facebook page reads: "Dear friends, I'm going to Morocco in December.

"Any of you guys who is around by then or any mountain friends who knows something about Mount Toubkal? (sic)."

Both women had been studying 'outdoor activities and cultural guidance' at a college in the village of Bo, in Telemark, Norway.