Australia thwarts plane attack plot
SECURITY has been tightened at Australian airports after police foiled “Islamic-inspired” plans for a bomb attack on an aircraft during counter-terrorism raids in which four men were arrested, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said yesterday.
The increased security presence caused minor delays for some air transport operators yesterday and authorities warned travellers to prepare for potentially more significant disruptions as traffic picked up during the week.
“In recent days, law enforcement has become aware of information that suggested some people in Sydney were planning to commit a terrorist act using an improvised device,” AFP commissioner Andrew Colvin said during a news conference with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull yesterday.
“We do believe it is Islamicinspired terrorism. Exactly what is behind this is something we will need to investigate fully.
“At this time we don’t have a great deal of information on the specific attack.
“However, we are investigating information indicating that the aviation industry was potentially a target.”
Five properties were searched on Saturday across the Sydney suburbs of Surry Hills, Lakemba, Punchbowl and Wiley Park.
Colvin said four of those searches could continue for days.
An AFP spokesman said the four men, who were arrested on Saturday, had not been charged as of yesterday afternoon. Turnbull said advice from Australian security and intelligence agencies had led to increased security measures at Sydney Airport on Thursday with tighter security implemented at the country’s other airports on Saturday.
“Some of the measures will be obvious to the public, some will not be,” Turnbull said.
Colvin said travellers could expect an increased police and security presence at airports.
Airlines Qantas Airways and Virgin Australia notified passengers via text messages, social media and e-mails to expect delays, though disruptions at airports appeared to be minimal yesterday.
Australia, a close ally of the US, has been on higher alert for attacks by home-grown militants returning from fighting in the Middle East, or their supporters, since 2014. – Reuters