Former Australian PM potential target of radicalized teen

A radicalized Melbourne teenager -- shot dead two years ago after attacking two police officers -- researched the movements of then-Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Australia's national security service has told an inquest.

Numan Haider, 18, stabbed two police officers outside a Melbourne police station on Sept. 23, 2014, before one of the wounded policemen returned fire, killing him.

On Wednesday, the inquest into Haider's knife-welding attack heard that Australia's Secret Intelligence Organization (ASIO) kept a watchful eye on the teen after the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) cancelled his passport in April, 2014.

Speaking before the hearing, ASIO's Natalie Mayfair -- not her real name -- said the 18-year-old appeared to be on a "trajectory" toward Islamic extremism.

While monitoring his internet use, ASIO discovered the teenager had conducted a number of alarming searches, including "home made suppressor" and "fire crackers wrapped in metal."

On top of that, Haider may have gone a step further by establishing targets. Mayfair said the teen also sought out online information regarding Abbott's next visit to Haider's hometown of Melbourne as well as the Holsworthy army barracks in Sydney, which was the target of a foiled terror plot in 2009.

Five days before the attack in Melbourne, Haider posted a photograph of himself on his social media profile wearing a balaclava while holding the Shahada flag. The picture, as well as an online conversation with an associate that same week in which he said he would "do it soon," led ASIO to take action.

However, ASIO officials felt compelled to brief Victoria Police and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) on the circumstances of the case, believing they couldn't approach Haider unarmed.

A dispute has now emerged, however, with Victoria Police and the AFP -- who each had an officer stabbed -- questioning if ASIO provided all relevant information in an earlier meeting before they decided to approach Haider.

Previously, the inquest heard that ASIO did not circulate the picture of Haider dressed in a balaclava at the briefing, and AFP and Victorian officers claimed they may not have approached the troubled teen if they'd been made aware of it.

Earlier this week, a 16-year-old boy from Sydney was arrested after reportedly planning to stage an attack on Australia's most solemn day of military commemoration, Anzac Day.

The teen appeared in court on Tuesday and pleaded not guilty to one count of preparing a terrorist attack, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Source: XINHUA