Australian trio charged with terrorism over mosque fires

All three men face life imprisonment over arson attack at the Imam Ali Islamic Centre in December 2016.

August 20, 2017 11:16 am | Updated December 03, 2021 05:04 pm IST - MELBOURNE:

An Australian police officer stands in front of the the Redfern Mosque, close to the scene of overnight terror raids on July 30, 2017 in Sydney. Australian police have charged three men with committing terrorist acts on suspicion of starting fires at a Shia mosque in Melbourne last year. The three were apparently influenced by radical Muslim ideology and inspired by the Islamic State.

An Australian police officer stands in front of the the Redfern Mosque, close to the scene of overnight terror raids on July 30, 2017 in Sydney. Australian police have charged three men with committing terrorist acts on suspicion of starting fires at a Shia mosque in Melbourne last year. The three were apparently influenced by radical Muslim ideology and inspired by the Islamic State.

Australian police have charged three men with committing terrorist acts on suspicion of starting fires at a Shia mosque in Melbourne last year, inspired by the Islamic State and intending to divide the Muslim community.

Two of the men are already in custody and awaiting trial on suspicion of plotting bomb attacks in Australia’s second largest city last year, while a third a 29-year-old Melbourne man was arrested late on Saturday.

All three face a maximum penalty of life imprisonment over the arson attack at the Imam Ali Islamic Centre in December 2016.

‘No place in society’

Australian Federal Police’s counter terrorism national manager said that attacking a place of worship had no place in society.

“It is clear that these arson attacks were designed to intimidate and influence those that attend this mosque and the wider Islamic community,” Assistant Commissioner Ian McCartney said on Sunday.

Australia, a staunch U.S. ally that has sent troops to Afghanistan and Iraq, has been on heightened alert since 2014 for attacks by home-grown militants returning from fighting in the Middle East, or their supporters.

While there have been several “lone wolf” attacks, officials say 13 significant plots have been foiled in that time.

Police say the three men were adherents of militant Sunni Muslim ideology.

Police said the arrest of the man on Saturday came after extensive investigations into fires at the Melbourne mosque but said it did not relate to any direct threat to the community.

The other two men facing charges are in custody and awaiting trial for allegedly planning militant attacks around Christmas Day 2016 in Melbourne.

The two, a 25-year-old and a 27-year-old, will also be charged with terrorist offences for causing a previous fire at the Imam Ali Islamic Centre in November 2016.

The man arrested on Saturday will appear in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Sunday, while the other two will appear in court on Monday.

Other arrests

This month, two men were charged with terror-related offences after authorities disrupted what they described as an IS-inspired plot to bomb an Etihad Airways flight.

Another man arrested in relation to the foiled plot was charged with weapons offences and released on bail. A fourth man was released without charge.

A gunman in a 2014 Sydney cafe siege boasted about links with IS militants, although no direct ties with the group were established. The gunman and two other people were killed in the siege.

Top News Today

Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.