Police in Australia have arrested seven teenagers who posed an “unacceptable risk and threat” to the community following the stabbing of a bishop in a Sydney church.
The teenagers, all between 15 and 17 years old, are accused of being part of a network that follows a violent extremist ideology.
That network included a 16-year-old boy who has been accused of committing a terrorist act after Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was stabbed during a service at the Assyrian Church of Christ the Good Shepherd on April 16.
Following the alleged terrorist attack, New South Wales Police Deputy Commissioner David Hudson said “a number of associates were identified” who authorities believed deserved further police attention.
The Joint Counter Terrorism Team, which comprises federal and state police as well as Australia’s national security agency, and which specializes in extremists and organized crime, launched an investigation.
Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Krissy Barrett, along with New South Wales Police Deputy Commissioner David Hudson. Photo: Reuters
“We will allege that these individuals adhered to a violent, religiously motivated extremist ideology,” Hudson said.
“The group… was considered to pose an unacceptable risk and threat to the people of New South Wales, and our current purely investigative strategies could not adequately ensure public safety.”
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More than 400 police officers executed 13 search warrants at properties across Sydney’s southwest during the investigation, but no evidence of specific targets or the timing of the intended “violent act” was found, police said.
Five other teenagers continue to be questioned by the Joint Anti-Terrorism Team.
It comes after an Australian Federal Court judge extended an order banning social media platform X from showing videos of the bishop being repeatedly stabbed.
Judge Geoffrey Kennett extended the ban the court imposed on Monday until May 10.
The ban was met with criticism from X CEO Elon Musk, who accused Australia of censorship.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese later notified Musk.calling him an “arrogant billionaire who thinks he’s above the law.”