Three men who allegedly plotted "chilling" terrorist attacks in Melbourne were charged early on Tuesday, less than two weeks after a stabbing rampage inspired by the ISIS group left two dead in Australia's second city, police said.
The trio, all Australian nationals of Turkish descent, were detained by counter-terrorism police in overnight raids as they escalated preparations to attack crowded areas of Melbourne, according to police.
The three, two brothers aged 31 and 26 and a 21-year-old, were later charged with planning a terrorist attack, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, officials said.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton said the men were "certainly inspired by ISIS" but had no known links to a specific organisation.
They had been under investigation since March but had become "more energised" since the ISIS-inspired stabbing attack in Melbourne on November 9, he said.
The men had tried to purchase semi-automatic .22 calibre rifles and police were concerned they could target coming Christmas season events when huge crowds gather in the city.
"There was a view towards a crowded place, a place where maximum people would be attending, to be able to kill, we allege, as maximum an amount of people as possible," Mr Ashton said.
The group had not yet picked a specific target or time for the attack, and Mr Ashton said that police were confident Tuesday's arrests had "neutralised any threat to the … community from this group".
In the November 9 attack, a Somali-born Australian, Hassan Khalif Shire Ali, stabbed and killed one man and wounded two others in a central shopping area before being shot dead by police.
Coincidentally, the victim of that attack, Sisto Malaspina, 74, was honoured by a state funeral in Melbourne on Tuesday.
Hundreds of Melbournians and dignitaries attended a service at St Patrick's Cathedral in the city to bid farewell to Malaspina, the owner of a local Italian cafe and a well-known figure on the city's vibrant restaurant scene.
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Melbourne terror attack leaves one dead, two injured
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The three arrested men were identified by local media as Ertunc and Samed Eriklioglu, aged 30 and 26 respectively, and Hanifi Halis, 21. Court officials could not immediately confirm their identities.
"If we had not acted early in preventing this attack, we'll allege the consequences would have been chilling, with … a potential significant loss of human life," said Ian McCartney, a federal counter-terrorism police spokesman, in announcing the arrests.
Australian police have charged 90 people in relation to 40 counter-terrorism investigations since 2014, when the country's terrorism alert level was raised to "probable".
Melbourne has been the target of a number of attacks and plots.
In addition to the November 9 knife rampage, a 28-year-old man was convicted on six counts of murder last week for mowing down dozens of people in the same street in January last year, and Shire Ali's brother is in jail awaiting trial over a plot to cause mass casualties last New Year in Melbourne's Federation Square.
Shire Ali, like the three men arrested on Tuesday, had his passport cancelled to keep him from joining ISIS in the Middle East, and Mr Ashton said this may have led to their actions at home.
"Unfortunately, the ISIS propaganda machine and that of Al Qaeda promotes this type of activity so when people are prevented from travelling or it's difficult to get to the conflict zone, often the view will be to change tack and commit an act in the country in which they live," he said.
Police said the investigation that led to Tuesday's arrests had been complicated by the suspects' use of encrypted messaging applications, prompting the government to renew calls for urgent action on controversial legislation that would allow authorities to break the encryption.
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said nine out of 10 of the high priority intelligence investigations currently under way were being undermined by suspects' use of encrypted messaging.
"That's an unacceptable risk in this environment," he said.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The%20specs
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The specs
Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: six-speed and 10-speed
Power: 271 and 409 horsepower
Torque: 385 and 650Nm
Price: from Dh229,900 to Dh355,000
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Adele: The Stories Behind The Songs
Caroline Sullivan
Carlton Books
Previous men's records
- 2:01:39: Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) on 16/9/19 in Berlin
- 2:02:57: Dennis Kimetto (KEN) on 28/09/2014 in Berlin
- 2:03:23: Wilson Kipsang (KEN) on 29/09/2013 in Berlin
- 2:03:38: Patrick Makau (KEN) on 25/09/2011 in Berlin
- 2:03:59: Haile Gebreselassie (ETH) on 28/09/2008 in Berlin
- 2:04:26: Haile Gebreselassie (ETH) on 30/09/2007 in Berlin
- 2:04:55: Paul Tergat (KEN) on 28/09/2003 in Berlin
- 2:05:38: Khalid Khannouchi (USA) 14/04/2002 in London
- 2:05:42: Khalid Khannouchi (USA) 24/10/1999 in Chicago
- 2:06:05: Ronaldo da Costa (BRA) 20/09/1998 in Berlin
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
The details
Colette
Director: Wash Westmoreland
Starring: Keira Knightley, Dominic West
Our take: 3/5
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Civil%20War
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A Dog's Journey
Directed by: Gail Mancuso
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Josh Gad, Marg Helgenberger, Betty Gilpin, Kathryn Prescott
3 out of 5 stars
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
The line up
Friday: Giggs, Sho Madjozi and Masego
Saturday: Nas, Lion Bbae, Roxanne Shante and DaniLeigh
Sole DXB runs from December 6 to 8 at Dubai Design District. Weekend pass is Dh295 while a one day pass is Dh195. Tickets are available from www.soledxb.com
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.6-litre V6
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 285bhp
Torque: 353Nm
Price: TBA
On sale: Q2, 2020
AUSTRALIA SQUADS
ODI squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
Twenty20 squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets