Australian police say a knife attack in Sydney that wounded a bishop and a priest during a church service as worshippers watched online and in person, and sparked a riot was an act of terrorism.
Australian police say a knife attack in Sydney that wounded a bishop and a priest during a church service as horrified worshippers watched online and in person, and sparked a riot was an act of terrorism.
Police arrested a 16-year-old boy Tuesday after the stabbing at Christ the Good Shepherd Church that injured Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel and a priest. Both are expected to survive.
New South Wales Police Commissioner Karen Webb said the suspect’s comments pointed to a religious motive for the attack.
« We’ll allege there’s a degree of premeditation on the basis that this person has travelled to that location, which is not near his residential address, he has travelled with a knife and subsequently the bishop and the priest have been stabbed, » Webb said. « They’re lucky to be alive. »
The teenager was known to police but was not on a terror watch list, Webb said.
The Australian Security Intelligence Organization, the nation’s main domestic spy agency, and Australian Federal Police had joined state police in a counter-terrorism task force to investgate who else was potentially involved.
ASIO director-general Mike Burgess said the investigation had yet to uncover any associated threats.
« It does appear to be religiously motivated, but we continue our lines of investigation, » Burgess said.
« Our job is to look at individuals connected with the attacker to assure ourselves that there is no-one else in the community with similar intent. At this stage, we have no indications of that, » Burgess added.
On ASIO’s advice, the risk of a terrorist attack in Australia is rated at « possible. » That is the second lowest level after « not expected » on the five-tier National Terrorism Threat Advisory System.
The boy had been convicted in January of a range of offenses including possession of a switch blade knife, being armed with a weapon with an intention to commit an indictable offence, stalking, intimidation and damaging property, Australian Broadcasting Corp.
