Melbourne man charged with terrorism offences after alleged Islamic State ties

Melbourne, Australia - A 65-year-old Australian man is accused of pledging allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group and disseminating thousands of extremist files online between 2015 and 2020, authorities said on Wednesday. The man, whose name has not been released, was arrested as part of a wider crackdown on alleged IS supporters in Victoria state since May.

He faces charges of membership in a terrorist organization and transmitting violent extremist material via an encrypted messaging app. The maximum penalty for these offenses is 10 years in prison. Authorities allege that the man shared information on avoiding detection by law enforcement and instructions for planning and conducting mass casualty attacks.

The material he distributed glorified acts of violence and terrorism, aiming to radicalize others. The investigation began when border officials inspected his luggage upon his return from a six-month trip to Egypt in 2020. The man was not known to have traveled abroad since 2020 and was not linked to any attack or plot. Earlier this month, a 30-year-old Melbourne man was arrested for possessing violent extremist content while attempting to leave Australia for the Middle East.

He was part of an online group chat with five other men arrested in May, all facing charges related to possessing extremist material, including IS propaganda. The Islamic State group, weaker since 2019 when it lost territory in Iraq and Syria, still has active cells worldwide and has inspired various independent attacks, including a mass shooting at a Hanukkah event in Australia in 2025, in which two men are accused of killing 15 Jewish people.

According to Australia's national security agencies, around 200 Australians traveled to Syria and Iraq between 2012 and 2019 to join IS, with dozens more supporting or planning attacks in the country.