.
A Syrian Islamic State
supporter has been arrested for planning a terrorist attack just hours ahead of
the Anzac Day dawn service in Gallipoli.
The suspect,
Abdulkarem Hilef, 25, was born in eastern Syria, and unverified media reports
suggest he was planning to either bomb the service or use a vehicle to drive
into people. The Lebanese newspaper Aydinlik reports Turkish police sources
saying the alleged attack was to be in retaliation for the Christchurch mosque
massacre.
Turkey’s Anti-Terror
Branch worked with police in Tekirdag, on the northern area of the peninsula
and about two hours’ drive from Anzac Cove to make the arrest on Wednesday.
Police said they had
been monitoring mobile phone communications and identified the suspect as a
member of Islamic State and he was believed to be targeting the Anzac Day
service.
The Turkish
authorities said they were continuing their investigations.
It is unclear if the
Anzac arrest is linked to an arrest of a top level Islamic State member,
identified as E.Y. in Bursa, Western Turkey earlier in the week.
About 1200 Australian
and New Zealand tourists have been registered to attend the dawn service.
The Australian had
revealed on Tuesday that Turkish authorities had been so concerned about the
terror threat at the service that they had banned all Turkish nationals.
The Turkish government
has imposed the strict ban on locals being anywhere on the peninsula for the
service, including bus drivers and tour guides, only a month after President
Recep Tayyip ¬Erdogan spoke about sending Australians home in body bags, and
the Turkish media repeatedly broadcast footage of the Christchurch massacre
during political campaigning.
[ Australian Reaction
]
Scott Morrison has
downplayed fears of a potential terrorist attack at Gallipoli and says there
has not yet been a link established between the arrest by Turkish services and
the service later today.
The Prime Minister
said in Townsville today that it was a “routine arrest” and reports were
inconclusive on whether Hilef was planning to attack Gallipoli services.
“It is fairly routine
for Turkish authorities to arrest people with suspected terrorist links,” he
said.
“The reports that we
are receiving are inconclusive about any link between that arrest and any
possible planned event at Gallipoli itself.”
Bill Shorten has urged
young Australians to continue to make pilgrimages to Gallipoli despite the
threats posed to the commemorations. “Australians can make a choice about the
world. We can make a choice that it’s too scary, we should never leave home, that
it’s too confronting and too difficult to navigate. I don’t have that view,” he
said in Darwin this morning.
“Just because there
are terrorists in the world, we can’t let them win y discouraging our young
people from travelling. Anzac Day is a sacred day, we can’t afford to let these
extremists discourage us. On the other hand, we have to maintain the utmost
care.”
Full news:
theaustralia.com.au
https://bit.ly/2ZzL9jT
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