In a recent event, the Australian police has announced that they have charged two men who were allegedly running a “sophisticated terrorist network”.
Two Men Helped Locals From Syria In Extremist Groups
As per the latest reports, the Australian police claimed that the two charged were helping locals from Syria to join violent extremist groups. The men aged between 34 and 31 were arrested in the states of Queensland and Victoria on Thursday. They both have been charged with crimes related to illegally entering a foreign state and engaging in hostile activities.
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Apart from facilitating others to travel across the borders, the 34-year-old has also been accused of going to Syria and engaging in hostile activities. This crime carries a potential of 20 years in jail.
Stepher Dametto, Australian Federal Police Commander said that the accused fought alongside the terrorist organizations and he committed a crime against the Syrian government as well. He also said that both the men also played a key role in establishing terrorist networks in Australia, Syria, and Turkey. These networks were then used by the Australian Foreign Terrorist Fighters to enter the Syrian soil between 2012 and 2014.
Police Claims Accused Fought Alongside Jabhat al-Nusra
The police further claimed that once the accused were in Syria, they fought alongside the terrorist organization Jabhat al-Nusra which is a violent extremist group that has engaged in hostilities against the Syrian government.
The US government agencies in the past have also flagged the 31 year old for sending some of the support material to another terrorist organization named Al Qaeda. After the Australian police searched the properties of both the men, they discovered A$80,000 in cash along with some high-value gemstones.
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Dametto said that it’s not only about the ideology and the background of the accused but also about the criminal actions that they committed.
