The 21-year-old was held by police in the southwestern German town of Ludwigsburg, where he was living under a false identity as an asylum seeker.

Spanish authorities had requested his arrest for allegedly recruiting members for "Islamic State" (IS) and planning attacks. In Spain, he was said to have acted as a contact for the militant group, being "very active on social networks" in disseminating propaganda for IS.

In July, he was said to have announced his intention to travel to Syria where he would fight with IS, urging others to join him. The man, who authorities had been investigating for months, was also said to have expressed his own desire to stage an attack on Spain or Spanish interests.

Escaped police swoop in Canaries

Spanish authorities said the accused had fled Spain after escaping police raids on the island of Lanzarote in early July. A Spanish woman was arrested in that operation, accused of seeking to recruit pre-teen girls and teenagers to send to IS.

Spain has arrested some 50 suspected Islamist militants and recruiters this year alone, mostly in the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla on the north coast of Morocco, as well as in the Catalonia region.

The Spanish government says at least 116 Spaniards have left to join IS or other Islamist groups in Iraq and Syria. The Spanish interior ministry in June raised its terror alert level from three to four, with five being the highest level possible.

rc/jil (AFP, AP, Reuters)