Australia - Men held over 'advanced' plot for suicide attacks on army bases

[Crusader74]

A PLOT by Islamic extremists in Melbourne to launch a suicide attack on an Australian Army base has been uncovered by national security agencies.

Federal and state police, armed with search warrants, swooped on members of the suspected terror cell this morning, as they seek to arrest Australian nationals of Somali and Lebanese background in what will be the second-largest counter-terrorism operation in the nation's history. The men are expected to be charged with a range of terrorism-related offences.



Authorities believe the group is at an advanced stage of preparing to storm an Australian Army base, using automatic weapons, as punishment for Australia's military involvement in Muslim countries. It is understood the men plan to kill as many soldiers as possible before they are themselves killed.



Members of the group have been observed carrying out surveillance of Holsworthy Barracks in western Sydney and other suspicious activity around defence bases in Victoria.



Electronic surveillance on the suspects is believed to have picked up discussions about ways to obtain weapons to carry out what would be the worst terror attack on Australian soil.

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,25879555-952,00.html

 

[Crusader74]

Several people in custody after counter terrorism operation
Tuesday, 04 August 2009 06:41


Several people are in custody and a number are assisting with inquiries as a result of a joint counter-terrorism operation in Melbourne this morning involving the Australian Federal Police (AFP), Victoria Police, NSW Police, the NSW Crime Commission and Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO).

Police executed 19 search warrants across Melbourne at around 4.30 this morning. Warrants were executed on homes in Glenroy, Carlton, Meadow Heights, Roxburgh Park, Broadmeadows, Westmeadows, Preston, Epping and Colac.

Today’s operation involved approximately 400 officers from the Australian Federal Police, Victoria Police and NSW Police.

Police believe members of a Melbourne-based group have been undertaking planning to carry out a terrorist attack in Australia and allegedly involved in hostilities in Somalia.

Further details will be provided as soon as possible.

FROM the Victorian Police media website

 

[QC]

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,25879555-952,00.html

This story has legs. There's currently a trial involving some janood from Victoria.
We've been lucky so far with a modest number of arrests being made in separeate indidents over the past eight years or so and no mass casualty attacks for far. The linky has multi-media links as well.

FOUR men will face court over an alleged plot to launch a suicide attack on an Australian Army base after a series of police raids this morning.
Federal and state police, armed with search warrants, swooped on members of the suspected terror cell this morning, as they seek to arrest Australian nationals of Somali and Lebanese background in what will be the second-largest counter-terrorism operation in the nation's history, The Australian reports.
Four men - all Australian citizens - have been arrested and are expected to be charged with a range of terrorism-related offences.

Several other men have also been spoken to as part of this investigation, police said.

Authorities believe the group was at an advanced stage of preparing to storm an Australian Army base, using automatic weapons, as punishment for Australia's military involvement in Muslim countries.

It is understood the men plan to kill as many soldiers as possible before they were themselves killed.

Members of the group have been observed carrying out surveillance of Holsworthy Barracks in western Sydney and other suspicious activity around defence bases in "which we're not prepared to divulge" Victorian Police Commissioner Simon Overland told a news conference this morning.

Electronic surveillance on the suspects is believed to have picked up discussions about ways to obtain weapons to carry out what would be the worst terror attack on Australian soil.

Commissioner Overland would not say when the alleged attacks were to have taken place, saying details of that would become available in court documents.

"We got to a point where we were satisfied it was appropriate to act," he said.

Police are undertaking further inquiries in Ausrtralia and overseas.

The cell has been inspired by the Somalia-based terrorist movement al-Shabaab, with two Melbourne men, both Somalis, having travelled to Somalia in recent months to obtain training with the extremist organisation, which is aligned with al-Qaeda.

The investigation of the group, dubbed Operation Neath, involves about 150 members of the Australian Federal Police, Victoria Police and ASIO. It was launched in late January and more than 400 officers have worked on the investigation.

Search warrants for at least 19 properties across Melbourne were prepared to allow authorities to obtain more evidence against the group, which is believed to number about 18, with a smaller, hardcore element.

The suspects include Australians of Somali and Lebanese descent, most of whom are labourers employed in Melbourne's construction industry, or taxi drivers.

Commissioner Overland said that some of the searches may take more than 24 hours to complete.

He said some of the men arrested would be appearing in court later today.

Mr Overland said he was extremely disappointed the operation had leaked to the media and both the Victorian Police and the Australian Federal Police would be investigating the source of the leaks.

He said despite negotiations with The Australian, copies of the paper with reports of the raid were available on the streets of Melbourne at 1.30am - before the search warrants were executed.


"The fact that this was made public before the warrants were executed were of obvious concern".

He said leaks placed officers' lives at risk.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, speaking in Cairns ahead of the Pacific Islands Forum, said the raids and arrests in Melbourne were a “sobering reminder of the constant threat of terrorism at home and overseas”.

He said there was no change to the nation’s terror alert levels remaining at medium.

Mr Rudd said he was first briefed on the covert anti-terror operation on August 2 and commended “the combined and co-ordinated work” of the various police and intelligence agencies.

He said it was inappropriate for him to comment further on the case with the matter before the courts.

 

[Crusader74]

This hopefully will make the fuckers think twice before trying this again on Oz Soil..

Again Kudos to the Security Services who caught the fuckers!

 

[SpitfireV]

Hmmm. And people give me the upturned eyes when I mention terrorism in or near NZ.

Good work on AFP/ASIO/Whoever's part.

 

[Crusader74]

Hmmm. And people give me the upturned eyes when I mention terrorism in or near NZ.

Good work on AFP/ASIO/Whoever's part.

No one is immune to these fuckers cracked ideology..

 

[QC]

I recall post 9/11 there where some janood who where doing some SCUBA courses in NZ. Someone asked some questions and they disappeared.

 

[SpitfireV]

No one is immune to these fuckers cracked ideology..

People don't listen. People are stupid. I am not people. Ergo, I am smarts.

 

[Crusader74]

Forensic police inspect a car at a house in View St., Glenroy in Melbourne's north, Australia, 04 August 2009. Four people were arrested during the joint counter terrorism, suspected of were planning a suicide mission involving semi-automatic weapons on an Australian miliary base operation

 

[Gypsy]

Well done, glad to see this.