ASIO has raised Australia’s terrorist threat level from medium to high.
“I regret to say there are people who would do us harm – and some of them are Australian citizens,” Prime Minister Tony Abbott said at a press conference in Melbourne this afternoon.
Mr Abbott said the Federal government has “no specific intelligence” of a plot to launch a terrorist attack.
“What we do have is intelligence that there are people with the intent and the capability to mount attacks,” he said.
He added that Australians would notice more security at airports, government buildings and sporting events.
The move, which means a terrorist attack in Australia is likely — but stops short of the highest warning level of extreme, when an attack is “imminent” — comes after AFP counterterrorism officers yesterday conducted raids across Brisbane on the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in the US.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Ken Lay told told Fairfax Radio earlier today the risk of a terrorist attack on home soil had reached a new high.
“There is no doubt that there are some concerns about what it happening in the Middle East, and some Australians who have been there and are coming back,” Mr Lay said.
He said he thought it was time to consider raising the threat level.
“I think it is probably an appropriate time to have a think about the (threat) level at the moment.”
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Top Comments
It's a concern for sure however I wonder how much of this will be used to take more liberties away. As someone who could, if she wanted, legally hold and Iranian passport and who identifies as Assyrian ( one of the many tribes of pool being slaughtered by ISIS) I am always concerned when our government takes these stands my first hand experiences of them are not good. To be clear I was born here and I only hold an Australian passport but I've been routinely targeted in recent years in this country and the UK. Europe on the other hand leaves me in peace.
As someone else said here I too do wonder because tony Abbott has been so unpopular if this is about "polling and creating fear." I would say though we probably always (since 9/11) have a good chance of this happening, unfortunately though what can we as the public really do about it, should I avoid catching trains if I see an Arab carrying a backpack? All this does is make us all paranoid when we have no control over what happens, I can think of many "soft spot" areas that would be easy to bomb because appropriate security is either not there or too difficult to adequately implement, I won't mention them because I don't want to put ideas into any terrorists head but if I've thought of them probably terrorist have too.