Travnik sigurniji od Sidneja :)

What we know about hostage-taker "Sheikh" Man Haron Monis

— Monis moved to Australia as a refugee, from Iran, in 1996. He has no known connections to extremist groups but is well known by police for his record. He is a self-styled sheikh and self-employed spiritual adviser and astrologer.
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— He was previously a Shia Muslim, as are most Iranians, but later converted to Sunni Islam and changed his name from Mohammad Hassan Manteghi Bourjerdi to Man Haron Monis.

The self-styled Muslim cleric was born in Iran and sought political asylum in Australia in 1996.

He is well known to the Australian police and is currently on bail for for being an accessory to the murder of his ex-wife.

He is also facing more than 40 sexual and indecent assault charges.

17.10 – Otmičar i još jedna osoba poginuli su tokom policijske akcije, javlja australijski Ej-Bi-Si. Od sedam osoba koje su na nosilima evakuisane iz kafića, tri su teže ranjene.

Gotov je.

Ministre, daj nam malo razmišljanja Australaca u svojoj blizini. Nije valjda da ih je sve zahvatila ova #Illridewithyou glupost. Jesu li zbilja tako naivni?

AFP uncover plot to attack government building, two arrested in overnight raids

Two arrested in fresh counter-terror raids
Documents seized that pointed to an attack on government building
No connection to Martin Place siege
The dual arrests come a day after Prime Minister Tony Abbott said there had been a “heightened level of terror chatter” in the aftermath of the Martin Place siege
TWO men believed to be part of a terror plot to attack a government building in Sydney were arrested in overnight raids by a joint terrorism task force.

The Australian Federal Police seized a “significant amount of material” including documents with enough detail to “facilitate a terror attack” in a raid last Thursday which were followed up by arrests on Tuesday night.

AFP Deputy Commissioner Michael Phelan confirmed the arrests by Operation Appleby officers.

“Certainly the documents talked a little bit about potential government targets and so on and what that did, coupled with other things that were seized during the search warrant gave us significant concern to act early,” Deputy Commissioner Phelan said.

Those potential targets were around federal and state facilities in Sydney, he said.

A 20-year-old was arrested at his house in Regent’s Park on Tuesday afternoon and a 21-year-old Marsfield man was taken into custody as part of continuing investigations into the alleged planning of a terrorist attack on Australian soil.

The older man had breached a control order.

“Last night as a result of activity by the joint counter-terrorism team two people were arrested,” Deputy Commissioner Phelan said.

“There was enough (material) there that gave concern to us that something was being planned.

“They were charged in relation to having a document that was designed to clearly facilitate an attack.

“I want to assure everybody that this is part of an ongoing activist that’s commenced over a period of time.

“There is no threat to security.”

The terrorism threat level remains high, meaning a terrorist attack is likely but not imminent.

He said the group under investigation had no contact with Martin Place siege gunman Man Haron Monis.

When asked about the nature and size of the group they have been investigating, Phelan added:

“Certainly their ideology is linked to IS overseas.

“It is a group of people here in Sydney that we’ve been actively monitoring for a long period of time now and any action they take we want to try to get ahead of them.

“I am confident that we’ve disrupted the activity that they were planning. And that is all I’m prepared to say at this particular point.”

The arrests follow Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s warning that there had been “a heightened level of terrorist chatter” following the Martin Place siege last week, and assured police and intelligence agencies were actively carrying out counter-terror operations.

“I’m alerting people to that fact the terror threat remains high. At this level an attack is likely,’’ he said.

‘‘We don’t know when and how ... but we do know there are people with the intent and the capability to carry out further attacks.

“I want to reassure you, though, that our law enforcement agencies and our security agencies will be working around the clock to keep you as safe as possible over the holiday season.”

When asked about the safety of the city, NSW Police Deputy Commisioner Catherine Burn said:

“It’s very, very important for the community to have the confidence that we are doing everything that we can to ensure the safety and as we into Christmas and new year that investigation will continue.

“We have heightened police activity and presence around public places and transport hubs and that involves a whole range of our police and that will be in place up until new year and of course on New Year’s Eve.”

The arrests are in relation to the raids in September during which 800 police were involved in counter-terrorism raids across Sydney’s west and northwest.

A total of 15 people were detained in that operation. Properties were also raided in Brisbane involving a further 70 police

Police claimed the arrests in September foiled a terrorist plot to “commit violent acts” including a plan to behead someone in a public place.

Both men arrested will appear in Parramatta Court today.

Why halal certification is in turmoil

Kirralie Smith is a permaculture farmer from northern New South Wales and a mother of three. She is also the public face of the virulent campaign to boycott halal food and products.

Halal means permissible for Muslims to eat or use, and Smith's Facebook page "'Boycott Halal in Australia" has 41,000 supporters. She speaks at events organised by "Islam-critical" groups such as the Q Society, which has also been involved in local campaigns to stop mosques being built. Her "Halal Choices" website, she says, gets 80,000 visitors a month.

She says her objection is not to Islam itself but the extra cost she thinks is imposed on Australian consumers by companies paying to have products – everything from milk to pies and shampoo – certified halal.

Halal products are certified as being free from anything that Muslims are not allowed to eat or use (such as pork and alcohol). The products must be made and stored using machines that are cleansed according to Islamic law.

Large processing plants will have Muslim staff members who are accredited in some instances to bless the factory. Halal slaughtering of animals in Australia is done after they are stunned.

Smith and her supporters claim halal certification is a scam by Muslim interests to raise money for mosques and therefore for "jihad." They base this assertion on media reports in France, Canada and the United States claiming certification funds had been paid to organisations linked to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.

The costs of certification vary between $1000 for a small company to $27,000 a month for a large abattoir.

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Accused terrorist plotter Mohammad Kiad a quiet nurse who loved luxury goods

A western Sydney man arrested over an alleged terrorism plot is a quiet nurse who never spoke about his religious beliefs to friends or colleagues at the removalist company where he worked.

Mohammad Kiad's social media profiles show a love for weight-lifting, Dolce and Gabbana, and Rolex watches.

However, police allege Mr Kiad, born in Kuwait, and his flatmate, Omar al-Kutobi, originally from Iraq, were about to use a large knife to harm or kill someone on Tuesday in a terrorist attack inspired by Islamic State.

Mr Kiad, 25, and Mr al-Kutobi, 24, were arrested on Tuesday afternoon after counter-terrorism police raided the granny flat they share at the back of a property on Riverview Road, Fairfield.

Officers found a hunting knife, a machete, a homemade Islamic State flag and a video recording featuring one of the men referring to committing a terrorist attack on Tuesday.

The men declined to come into Fairfield Local Court from the cells on Wednesday and will reappear in Central Local Court on Thursday where there is tighter security and a capacity to appear via audiovisual link due to security concerns.

Police allege the pair, who worked together as removalists, were planning a gruesome Islamic State terrorist attack from the granny flat as revenge for incidents overseas.

It was not clear where the attack was going to take place or who would be targeted, only that it was going to happen on Tuesday.

"We believe the men were potentially going to harm somebody, maybe even kill somebody, potentially using [the knife]," Deputy Police Commissioner Catherine Burn said in a briefing to the press.

"The intent is clear."

Mr al-Kutobi moved to Australia from Iraq in 2009 and became a citizen in 2013. He was studying nursing and working at a Villawood removalist company.

Mr Kiad moved to Australia from Kuwait about four years ago but could not transfer his nursing qualifications.

He worked as a security guard before joining the same removalist company, although Fairfax Media understands he was sacked in the past week.

A former colleague said Mr Kiad was gentle, nice and never spoke about religion.

"He is quiet, friendly and seemed to be open-minded about religion," said the man, who did not want to be identified.

"He seems very quiet at first, but when you get to know him, he is actually a funny person. He never talked about Islam or anything to me."

A neighbour who lived in a backyard caravan next door to the men said they appeared to be friendly, but they grew agitated in recent months.

Roberto Macatangay told reporters the men were devout Muslims, praying five times a day, but the conversations he had with them gave no indication they held radical views.

However, their behaviour changed recently and they became more reclusive in their granny flat and would be aggressive towards him.

"I'm scared that I'm living with these people, " Mr Macatangay told reporters on Wednesday morning. "They seemed to be really nice. They were sarcastic people but I didn't mind that. We used to joke about religion."

Commonwealth prosecutor Michael Allnutt said the allegations against the men were so serious that there would be an application that they be dealt with in the NSW Supreme Court – the highest court in NSW that usually deals with murders and very large instances of drug supply or fraud.

"It's a very, very serious allegation," Mr Allnutt told Fairfield magistrate Vivien Swain.

Islamic State has previously called on Muslims in Western countries to behead any non-believer they can find on the street, particularly police officers and law-enforcement workers.

The alleged terrorist plot was "the type of act ... consistent with messaging coming out of Islamic State", Deputy Commissioner Burn said.

The men were not on police or intelligence radars.

Counter-terrorism officers only knew about the alleged plot when they received information on Tuesday, forcing them to act immediately in an operation that included police from the Joint Counter Terrorism Team, Sydney, and members of the Tactical Operations Unit.

Deputy Commissioner Burn would not say where the information came from.

"We received further information that the attack was imminent and we acted," she said.

Searches were also conducted at the residence, as well as of a motor vehicle, and where the men work.

Serious problem: Abbott

Prime Minister Tony Abbott predicted that the threat of terrorism attacks like the one allegedly foiled in the Sydney raids on Tuesday would get "worse before it gets better".

Speaking to the Federal Parliament in Canberra on Wedenesday, Mr Abbott revealed additional details about the video that police allegedly found in the men's possession.

He said it was a "video recording of one suspect kneeling in front of the ISIL flag with the two knives whilst making a statement in Arabic".

"This was an imminent attack in Australia inspired by the ISIL or Da'esh death cult," Mr Abbott said.

"This is a serious problem and I fear … it will get worse before it gets better. As we have seen again and again in recent times, the death cult is reaching out all around the world including here in Australia.

"Regrettably there are people in Australia who are susceptible to these incitements to extremism and even terrorism."

- with David Wroe

Dva lika su imali plan da jednostavno noževima zakolju razrežu koliko god im ljudi padne pod ruke.

Knox Grammar erected a memorial to one of its paedophile teachers reading ‘he touched us all’, royal commission hears

THE sign on the school gates of the elite Knox Grammar unwittingly spoke volumes about the paedophile vice-principal: “He touched us all,” it read.

The embarrassed school had to remove the sign on its Cleveland St gates after it learned the late art teacher Bruce Barrett had sexually abused students, as revealed yesterday in the child sex abuse royal commission.

Knox Grammar School is an independent, Uniting Church, day and boarding school for boys, located in Wahroonga, New South Wales, an upper North Shore suburb of Sydney, Australia.

The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) was established on 22 June 1977 when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, the Presbyterian Church of Australia and the Congregational Union of Australia came together under the Basis of Union.