Australian Police Arrest Suspect for Planning Terrorist Attack

An Australian police official said on Tuesday that a suspect who intended to carry out a terrorist attack in Melbourne on New Year's Eve has been arrested. According to the Associated Press, Shaun Patten, Deputy Commissioner of Victoria Police, stated that the 20-year-old man, born in Australia to Somali parents, was planning to acquire an automatic weapon and shoot at people in Federation Square, the second largest square in Melbourne, during the New Year celebrations. Every year, thousands gather in this square to celebrate the New Year. Shaun Patten said the 20-year-old had downloaded instructions from the Al-Qaeda Arabian Peninsula website on how to carry out a terrorist attack and how to use a weapon. The Victoria Police official, without disclosing the suspect's name, added that he had expressed his intention to kill as many people as possible with a gun. He emphasized that with the arrest of this suspect, the threat has now been eliminated. Shaun Patten also mentioned that anti-terrorism police had been monitoring this man for a long time and knew he was a supporter of the Islamic State group. He was arrested when he attempted to acquire a weapon. According to the Associated Press, Australia has strict laws regarding firearm possession, and owning an automatic weapon is prohibited for ordinary citizens. Following concerns about potential terrorist attacks in the country, Australia raised its terror alert level in September 2014. The Associated Press reports that this 20-year-old is the seventy-fourth suspect arrested in the ongoing investigations by Australian anti-terrorism police since 2014. The suspect was arrested on Monday and is expected to appear in court late Tuesday or Wednesday.