A terror plot planned in Australia by members of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), also called Islamic State (IS) or Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), was foiled following raids conducted by counterterrorism forces. The terrorists were planning for random beheading to raise fear among the public.
Andrew Colvin, Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner, said to reporters that around 800 state police and federal officers conducted raids on about 12 suburban parts of Sydney and detained 15 ISIS suspects. Officers also raided some parts of Logan and Brisbane under a separate anti-terrorism operation.
Government officials revealed that the plan of the ISIS members was to kidnap random members of the public, behead them on camera and then releasing the video of the killings. Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, suggests that the raid foiled the terrorist act, which would have taken place soon in Brisbane and Sydney.
"The exhortations - quite direct exhortations - were coming from an Australian who is apparently quite senior in ISIL to networks of support back in Australia to conduct demonstration killings here in this country," says Abbott.
The Prime Minister has revealed that the counterterrorism forces raided the suburbs of Sydney after they received information from their intelligence team. He added that the planned act was intended and not a suspicion, which made the security agencies act quickly.
Government officials reveal that Mohammad Ali Baryalei, the suspected head of IS in Australia, was mentioned in the court filings as a co-conspirator of the plot. Police is on the look-out for Baryalei, who formerly worked as a bouncer at a Sydney nightclub.
Omarjan Azari, a 22-year old man was also arrested and presented in the court for conspiring in the terrorist act. Documents filed with the court indicate that Azari was involved in planning the "serious offences" that were mainly designed to horrify the public. Azari did not apply for bail and it is currently unclear about the sentence he faces if convicted.
Steve Boland, the attorney of Azari, suggests that the allegations on his client were based on just one phone call.
Another man was arrested during the raid for the possession of unauthorized and unlicensed firearms. However, he has been granted bail, but will appear in the court next week.
The latest raids have resulted in unrest in the Australian Muslim Community. More than 300 people took on to the streets of Sydney protesting the latest arrests.
