Rabat, Morocco: The lone suspect arrested in the killing of two Scandinavian tourists in Morocco's Atlas Mountains is connected to a terrorist group, Moroccan authorities say.

The women, from Denmark and Norway, were discovered stabbed in the neck on Monday by other tourists who alerted police, according to national media. Hiking in the area was temporarily suspended.

A forensic team attends the site where two Scandinavian women were found near Imlil in the High Atlas mountains, Morocco. Credit:2M/AP

The killings have shocked Morocco, a popular tourist destination where such attacks on foreigners are extremely rare.

The Rabat public prosecutor's office said in a statement on Wednesday, local time, that the only captured suspect had affiliations to a terrorist group, without naming the group. Local media named the group as Islamic State.