Australian officials said Monday they
were aware of 12 men or boys in the community who they believe could
commit an act of terror, as Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull convened a
national security meeting.
Canberra has become increasingly
concerned about the prospect of lone-wolf attacks by individuals
inspired by groups such as Islamic State, and a tightening of
counter-terrorism laws is underway.
Six attacks in Australia have been
foiled over the past year, according to the government. But several have
not, including a police employee shot dead in Sydney last month by a
15-year-old reportedly shouting religious slogans.
The Australian Federal Police’s
counter-terrorism chief Neil Gaughan told ABC television that a group of
12 men or boys capable of committing an act of terror were being
closely watched.
“I think there can be no doubt that
there’s a small group in Sydney that are engaged in activity which wants
to upset the Australian way of life,” he said.
The national broadcaster said the 12 were part of a larger group of 19, seven of whom were in prison.
Some of those under surveillance were
subject to orders controlling their movements and communications because
police believed there was an “unacceptable, high risk they will commit a
terrorist attack”, Gaughan added.
“Our first point of call in relation to
these investigations is where there’s been a criminal offence committed
we arrest, charge and prosecute,” he said. “If we don’t meet that
threshold, the next step we look at is a control order.”
The revelations came as Turnbull met in
Canberra with his national security committee to discuss further ways to
deal with violent extremism. He had returned from several overseas
summits dominated by terror concerns following the Paris attacks that
left 130 dead.
Turnbull told parliament that tackling
the financing of terrorism and the use of social media for propaganda,
as well as helping build greater social cohesion, were high on his
agenda.
“The terrorists want us to bend to their
will, to be frightened, to change the way we go about our lives, to
abandon our values,” he said.
“If we do that, they win. And they will not win, we will not let them win.”
A poll in The Australian newspaper
showed 76 percent of 1,573 interviewees believe a terror event in their
country is either inevitable, very likely or likely.
Authorities raised Australia’s terror
threat alert to high just over a year ago. They introduced new security
laws and have since conducted several raids.
The moves followed Melbourne police
shooting dead a “known terror suspect” who stabbed two officers in
September 2014, just one day after Islamic State militants called for
Muslims to indiscriminately kill Australians.
Last December Iranian-born self-styled
cleric Man Haron Monis and two hostages were killed following a 17-hour
siege at a central Sydney cafe.
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