5 held as police foil Christmas plot in Melbourne
Print Edition
POLICE in Australia have detained five men suspected of planning a series of Christmas Day attacks using explosives, knives and a gun in the heart of the country’s second-largest city, officials said yesterday.
The suspects were inspired by the Islamic State group and planned attacks on Melbourne’s iconic Flinders Street train station, neighboring Federation Square, a fashionable bar and restaurant precinct, and St Paul’s Cathedral, an Anglican church, said Victoria state’s Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton. He said they had been plotting the attack for three weeks.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said it was one of the most substantial plots that had been disrupted over the past several years.
Two of the seven people arrested in raids on Thursday night and yesterday morning — a 26-year-old man and a 20-year-old woman — were released without charge.
Five men between the ages of 21 and 26 remain in custody. Three appeared in a Melbourne court charged with preparing or planning a terrorist attack.
Hamza Abbas, 21, Ahmed Mohamed, 24, and Abdullah Chaarani, 26, did not enter pleas or apply for bail. They will next appear in court on April 28.
Police said the other two detained will also be charged with preparing a terrorist attack.
Four of the suspects were born in Australia while the fifth was born in Egypt and had Egyptian and Australian citizenship.
The suspects were preparing to use explosives, knives and a gun, Ashton said.
Police believe the raids on five Melbourne premises had neutralized the threat, he said.
Turnbull told reporters: “Islamist terrorism is a global challenge that affects us all. But we must not be cowed by the terrorists.”
Since Australia’s terrorist threat level was elevated in September 2014, the government says there have been four extremist attacks and 12 plots foiled by police.
Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said there will be extra police on the streets of Melbourne tomorrow to make the public feel safe.
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