Free Republic

The Australian police described on Friday an elaborate terrorist plot in which two men from Sydney tried to place an explosive supplied by the Islamic State on a flight last month, an operation that officials said was among “the most sophisticated plots that has ever been attempted on Australian soil.” The two men, who have been charged with planning a terrorist act, were scheduled to appear in court via video link on Friday, and they were refused bail. The Australian Federal Police said the charges covered an aborted attempt last month to place an explosive on an Etihad Airways flight...

Two women in New York City have been arrested over their ties to the ISIL terrorist group and allegedly planning to carry out a "terrorist attack" in the United States, federal prosecutors say. Noelle Velentzas, 28, and Asia Siddiqui, 31, plotted to hit government, police or military targets, according to the complaint filed Thursday at a US federal court in Brooklyn. The complaint said Velentzas and Siddiqui had praised the al-Qaeda terrorist group and were "citizens” of ISIL. "We are committed to doing everything in our ability to detect, disrupt and deter attacks by homegrown violent extremists," Brooklyn US Attorney...