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"Plan for the doomsday threat"
The Australian ^ | 27th August 2005 | Martin Chulov

Posted on 08/26/2005 3:43:33 PM PDT by naturalman1975

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "IN the commonwealth legal offices in Sydney, a scenario once branded a doomsday fantasy was this week placed high on the national agenda with cold, matter-of-fact reality.

The group of prosecutors, with access to hundreds of hours of intelligence reports, was well aware that Australia had faced at least four serious terrorist threats since 9/11.

In the latest scenario, the prosecutors cleared the way for up to 10 Australian residents to be charged with being members of a terrorist organisation.

And here's the catch. The suspects had not signed up to the global network of radical Islamists inspired by Osama bin Laden's al-Qa'ida. Nor had they been whipped into a mood for jihad by firebrand clerics abroad.

Those being targeted are mostly home-grown males. They have no formal links to Islamic terror groups. Many were born in Australia, while the rest have, at face value, found comfort in their new standards of living and embraced much of our way of life.

Their terrorist group does not even formally exist, except in the eyes of those who have watched, listened and learned about the men's alleged plans to attack prominent landmarks in Melbourne and Sydney.

Legal advice prepared in the past month suggests all that needs to be proved at law is that the suspects fostered an act of terror.

To be liable for prosecution, they need not progress to the next step of preparing for an attack. And in the rising threat that many believe Australia now faces, prosecutors are more than willing to chance their arm with a test case.

Since 9/11, Australian police and agents have foiled at least four serious terror plots aimed at Australian targets, including an alleged plot to attack the nation's electricity grid, a suspected move against Melbourne's public transport system and stock exchange building, and targets along the Sydney Harbour foreshore."