On Monday, Australia raised its terror threat level from ‘possible’ to ‘probable’, showing there’s more than 50% chance of an attack on the mainland within a year. The decision was informed by security advice, which noted an increase in extremist tendencies in various parts of the country.
Nevertheless, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese dismissed any immediate danger of assault.
Australia lowered its threat level back to “possible” in 2022 after being on “probable” for eight years.
Albanese said during a press conference that, “The advice that we have received is that more Australians are embracing a more diverse range of extreme ideologies and it is our responsibility to be vigilant.”
Mike Burgess, Director General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation attributed the increased threat level to Middle Eastern tensions notably Israel-Hamas conflict that started on 7th October. According to Burgess, “The conflict has fuelled grievances, promoted protests, undermined social cohesion and elevated intolerance.”
In recent months, Australia has experienced several cases of violence some of which are deemed as terrorism motivated. In April this year, police confirmed that a knife attack targeting an Assyrian church bishop and his followers in Sydney was driven by religious extremism itself – making it a terrorist act.
