Seven detained in police operation after knife attack in church in Australia

Australian police launched a “major operation” in Sydney this Wednesday, linked to the investigation of a knife attack that injured four people at a Christian mass in the city, on April 15, and detained seven people who posed a “risk and threat unacceptable”.

Australia’s intelligence agency, the Australian Security and Intelligence Organization (ASIO), said the operation was launched by a joint counter-terrorism team that includes federal and New South Wales state police.

ASIO added that the operation involves executing search warrants at several locations in Australia’s second largest city.

“Australia’s law enforcement agency is always doing its job to provide security information that allows police to deal with these issues when we have immediate threats to life,” said ASIO director-general Mike Burgess.

The commissioner of the Australian Federal Police confirmed that there was “a major operation underway in Sydney”, linked to the attack on the Church of Christ of the Good Shepherd, an Assyrian Orthodox temple in Wakely, on the outskirts of the city.

“We unfortunately have to make legal interventions to prevent any new plans or attacks against our communities,” added Reece Kershaw.

A 16-year-old young man was accused on Friday of the attack, which caused minor injuries to Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, Father Isaac Royel and two faithful, during mass, in direct transmission via the Internet.

According to the Australian press, before the attack, the teenager mentioned, in Arabic, alleged insults to the prophet Muhammad.

The stabbing sparked violent protests, which brought together hundreds of people from the Assyrian Orthodox community to demand that the alleged attacker be handed over to them.

The protests caused injuries to dozens of police officers, who detained six people, including a 17-year-old young man. The seven people arrested this Wednesday are linked to this individual and adhere to an “extremist ideology with a religious motivation”.

Deputy Police Commissioner Dave Hudson said it was “likely” the group was planning an attack, although no specific target was evident. “Their behavior, while they were under surveillance, led us to believe that if they committed any act, we would not be able to stop it,” he told reporters.

The director-general of ASIO said the number of minors under investigation by the agency has been increasing for a number of reasons, including content posted or shared on social media. “They are a vulnerable group,” said Burgess.