In Australia, police have carried out the nation's biggest ever counter-terrorism raids, in Sydney and Brisbane, with 15 arrests. It comes just days after the country raised its terror alert level to high. Details about the operation were revealed in a news conference with Acting Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police Andrew Colvin. CNN reports. Would you like to know more? Australian police move against pending terror attack (CNN, Sept 18, 2014) http://cnn.it/1ASIgWV "Australian authorities disrupted what they described as a pending attack "on a member of the public," part of a sweeping counterterrorism operation on Thursday that came just days after the country raised its terror alert level to high. At least one person was arrested in connection with "terrorism offenses" and another 15 were detained during more than two dozen searches in Sydney, acting Federal Police Commissioner Andrew Colvin said at a news conference. Authorities declined to detail the specific threat, citing an ongoing operation. The identity of the suspect in custody and the specific charges were expected to be released later in the day following a court appearance, they said. More than 800 law enforcement officials fanned out across Sydney suburbs as part of a coordinated operation to serve 25 search warrants. "Today's operation reflects the reality of the threat we actually face," Andrew Scipione, commissioner of New South Wales Police, said. A second series of searches were carried out in Brisbane, Scipione said. Those searches were connected to the arrests earlier this month of two men in Brisbane accused of recruiting and financing foreign fighters to Syria...." 'Beheading plot' foiled: Claims terror accused plotted to snatch random person off Sydney street (yahoo, Sept 18, 2014) http://yhoo.it/1p1USWe "EXCLUSIVE: Sickening allegations have emerged about Omarjan Azari, a Sydney man arrested and charged during the biggest counter-terror raids in Australia's history. 7News reporter Robert Ovadia has received information about an alleged plot to kidnap a random person from the streets of Martin Place in Sydney's CBD, execute them by beheading. The alleged intention was to film the act and then post it to social media, with the victim's body draped in an Islamic State flag. The extent of that plot, whether that is just this individual put before the court this morning or whether it will include some of the other 15 arrested this morning remains to be seen..." ASIO and hundreds of police raid Sydney and Brisbane homes in biggest counter-terrorism raid in Australia’s history (news.com.au, Sept 17, 2014) http://bit.ly/YTQbrE "ASIO and counter terrorism police have swooped on homes across north-western Sydney and other states this morning in what is believed to be the largest anti-terrorism bust in the nation’s history. Several arrests have been made in the secret pre-dawn raid, which is still in progress and one suspect has been taken into Australian Federal Police custody. The AFP says a suspected terrorist cell was “close to an attack.” The arrests follow the execution of a number of search warrants in Beecroft, Bellavista, Guildford, Merrylands, Northmead, Wentworthville, Marsfield, Westmead, Castle Hill, Revesby, Bass Hill and Regents Park. The Australian Federal Police can also confirm it is conducting search warrants in Brisbane. Warrants are being executed in the suburbs of Mount Gravatt East, Logan and Underwood. The raids come the day after a Sydney-based money transfer business was suspended from trading over possible links to terrorism. Federal agency Austrac discovered a $9 million discrepancy between what Bisotel Rieh Pty Ltd reported had been sent overseas over the past nine months and what the agency understood from its own checks had actually been sent. Last week the brother of a suspected Australian suicide bomber was arrested in Logan, south of Brisbane, for recruiting foot soldiers in the battle to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Omar Succarieh is one of two men who’ll be charged with organising incursions into Syria after a series of raids in Brisbane and Logan on Wednesday last week, following a year-long counter-terrorism investigation. This morning’s raids is believed to have been mounted following months of surveillance of people linked to the terrorist group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. The Daily Telegraph has learned that an estimated 600 officers from the Australian Federal Police, NSW counter terrorism unit and ASIO launched the pre-emptive strike in the early hours of this morning. The raids and arrests are believed to have been based on the execution of multiple ASIO and AFP warrants..."

• published: 18 Sep 2014
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