Australia has stopped 230 suspected jihadis from leaving the country to fight in the Middle East.
Since counterterrorism units were sent to eight Australian airports in August, 86,000 travelers have been questioned and 230 have been prevented from flying on suspicion they were headed to fight alongside extremist groups such as the Islamic State, Prime Minister Tony Abbott told Parliament on Wednesday.
Among those looking to leave includes at least three teenage boys, officials said. On March 8, two Sydney-born brothers, aged 16 and 17, were stopped at Sydney International Airport attempting to board a flight to Turkey without their parents’ knowledge. Within a week, a 17-year-old boy was intercepted at the same airport on suspicion he was headed to fight along side other jihadis in the Middle East, Border Protection Minister Peter Dutton said Wednesday.
The first two siblings were returned to their families and will be charged; the second boy, who was also returned to his family, is still under investigation.
The International Center for the Study of Radicalization and Political Violence reports between 100 and 250 Australians have joined Sunni militants in Iraq and Syria.
“It is absolutely critical that the people of Australia appreciate that the death cult is reaching out to vulnerable and impressionable young people,” Prime Minister Abbott said, citing Australia’s increasing investment on border security and efforts to counter extremist groups like the Islamic State. “The death cult is reaching out, seeking effectively to brainwash people online.”
In one example, the Islamic State posted on a social media website last week — two days before the latest teenage boy was stopped in Sydney — a step-by-step guide to help Australians leave and fight alongside the terror group, the Daily Telegraph reported.
(h/t the Associated Press)
