‘Far-right mass murder plot’ foiled in Iceland as cops seize stash of weapons in country’s first EVER terrorism arrests

POLICE in Iceland have arrested four people suspected of preparing a terrorist attack.

A stash of guns and thousands of rounds of ammunition were seized in the nation's first terrorism arrests and those detained have links with Nordic far-right groups, cops said.

The small nation of 375,000 people has topped the Global Peace Index since it was included in the ranking in 2008 and considered the "most peaceful country in the world".

Police said several semi-automatic weapons, including 3D-printed ones, had been seized at nine different locations.

Karl Steinar Valsson, National Commissioner of the Icelandic Police said cops swooped as part of "an investigation into the preparation of a terrorist attack".

Targets are believed to be "various institutions of society" and "citizens of the state", according to Valsson, possibly including the parliament and the police itself.

Police sources have said the men have connections with right-wing extremist groups in other Nordic countries,

Prosecutor Sveinn Ingiberg Magnússon said police are now investigating whether or not these men have any connections to extremist groups abroad.

According to the news site, the men arrested are also suspected of making weapons using 3D printers and are considered dangerous.

Four Icelanders in their 20s were arrested in Kopavogur, a suburb of the capital Reykjavik, and the southwestern town of Mosfellsbaer.

The large-scale operation on Wednesday involved some 50 officers police said.

Two of those detained have been remanded in custody on Thursday.

Violence is rare and it has one of the lowest crime rates in the world, although a surge in violent crime in recent years has worried the authorities.