Police in Sydney foiled an antisemitic terror plot. They now say it was fake
Politicians earlier described the finding as an antisemitic terrorism plot and a foiled mass casualty event
A fake plan to attack a Sydney synagogue using a caravan of explosives was fabricated by an organised crime network in order to divert police resources, Australian police said on Monday.
Authorities in January found explosives in a caravan that could have created a blast wave of 40 metres (130 feet), along with the address of a Sydney synagogue.
But police on Monday said the discovery was part of a "criminal con job". Police said the ease with which the caravan was found along with the lack of a detonator suggested there was never any intent to attack Jewish targets.
"The caravan was never going to cause a mass casualty event but instead was concocted by criminals who wanted to cause fear for personal benefit," Krissy Barrett, the Australian Federal Police's Deputy Commissioner for National Security, told a news conference.
"Almost immediately, experienced investigators... believed that the caravan was part of a fabricated terrorism plot – essentially a criminal con job."
Police are yet to make any arrests in relation to the planning of the fabricated plot, but have gone public with the information in order to provide comfort to the Jewish community in Sydney, Dave Hudson, New South Wales Police Deputy Commissioner, told the news conference.
"It was about causing chaos within the community, causing threat, causing angst, diverting police resources away from their day jobs, to have them focus on matters that would allow them to get up to or engage in other criminal activity," Hudson said.
Police are investigating a suspect involved in an organised crime network, he added.
Prime minister Anthony Albanese and Sydney Premier Chris Minns at the time characterised the incident as a potential terrorist attack.
Mr Minns said over 100 officers were investigating the incident, under a joint counter-terrorism operation involving state and federal police.
"This is the discovery of a potential mass casualty event. There is only one way of calling it out, and that is terrorism," he said at time.
Anthony Albanese was asked by broadcasters ABC: “Do you classify this as terrorism as well, prime minister?”
He responded: “I certainly do. I agree with Chris Minns. It’s clearly designed to harm people, but it’s also designed to create fear in the community. And that is the very definition.”
“It hasn’t been designated yet by the NSW police, but certainly is being investigated, including by the joint counter terrorism team,” Albanese said.
Australia has suffered a spate of antisemitic attacks in recent months, with homes, schools, synagogues and vehicles targeted by vandalism and arson, drawing the ire of the country's traditional ally Israel.
Jewish and Muslim organisations and hate researchers have recorded drastic spikes in hate-fuelled incidents on both groups since the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that triggered the war in Gaza. And although how groups define antisemitism and Islamophobia differs, the numbers the organisations cite all show a rise in incidents.
Antisemitic episodes in the two biggest cities, Sydney and Melbourne — home to 85 per cent of Australia’s Jewish population — have drawn the highest profile because they’re severe, unusual and public.
Since November they've included:
- Firebombing of a Melbourne synagogue, with one person hurt. Defacement of another with Nazi symbols and pro-Palestine graffiti
- A Jewish childcare centre set on fire
- Jewish schools in Sydney and Melbourne daubed with white supremacist graffiti
- Three Jewish businesses torched
- The former home of a prominent Jewish leader sprayed with graffiti
- Cars defaced and windows smashed in areas where Jews live
Counter-terrorism officials have arrested 12 people in connection with those crimes. Nearly 200 more have been charged since October 2023 in the state of New South Wales – where Sydney is located – with crimes linked to antisemitism, police say.