An alleged terrorist plot to attack law enforcement officers with knives and swords in Melbourne on Anzac Day has been busted in pre-dawn raids.
The five men taken into custody in connection with the alleged terror plot are believed to be associates of Melbourne terrorist Numan Haider, who was killed by the police after he attacked two cops in a stabbing frenzy last September, reported News.com.au.
The arrests took place after seven raids, involving more than 200 police, were carried out across Melbourne's south eastern suburbs around 3.30am on Saturday morning.
The report said that ASIO had warned the families of the five teens taken into custody about their alleged links to Islamic State (IS) recruiters. The family of one of the suspects said that they were told last year to stop their son from communicating with the extremist recruiter, who groomed Haider.
Police obtained search warrants for the homes of Sevdet Ramadan Besim, 18, from Hallam, Eathan Oswald Almo Cruse, 19, from Eumemmerring, and Harun Causevic, 18, Ismail Safi, 19, and Mehran Azami, 18, all from Narre Warren.
A 25-year-old, who was also named on the warrant, was not arrested but the police said that the threat had been "fully contained."
Reacting to the incident, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said in a press conference that the threat of terrorism should not stop Australians from taking part in the Anzac Centenary festivities in great numbers than ever before. He added that everything "humanly possible" was being done to keep people safe.