Australia’s intelligence agency has tracked down the funding source of masked criminals responsible for the arson attack on a Melbourne synagogue, linking the anti-Semitic crime to Iran. Officials revealed that the individuals charged in the incident were likely unaware of being manipulated by Tehran.
Younes Ali Younes, a 20-year-old local resident, appeared in Melbourne’s Magistrates Court and faced charges related to the December 6 arson attack on the Adass Israel synagogue and a car theft. He chose not to enter a plea and did not seek bail, while his lawyer declined to provide a statement to Reuters.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated that Australia’s intelligence agencies had evidence showing that the attack, along with another incident in Sydney the previous year, were orchestrated by the Iranian government. In response, Australia expelled Tehran’s ambassador, joining other Western nations in accusing Iran of conducting covert hostile activities within their borders.
Last year, security services in Britain and Sweden issued warnings about Iran utilizing criminal proxies to carry out violent attacks in their respective countries. London reported disrupting 20 Iran-linked plots since 2022, while a dozen other countries condemned what they described as a rise in assassination, kidnapping, and harassment schemes orchestrated by Iranian intelligence services.
Mike Burgess, Australia’s spy chief, disclosed that a series of intermediaries, known as “cut outs” in intelligence terminology, were employed to conceal Iran’s involvement in the attacks. Burgess also cautioned that Iran may have been behind additional attacks.
Albanese commended the efforts of security forces in tracing the funding sources of the criminal elements manipulated by the Iranian regime. He noted that investigations had uncovered financial transactions, involving both local and international payments to various criminals.
Albanese received a briefing from the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, revealing evidence of a “supply chain” connecting the attacks to offshore individuals and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Subsequently, Australian diplomats based in Iran were discreetly recalled, departing Iranian airspace shortly after midnight.
In a public announcement, accompanied by his spy chief and foreign and home affairs ministers, Albanese accused Iran of involvement in the attacks, leading to praise from Israel. However, Iran’s Foreign Ministry vehemently denied Australia’s allegations.
The breakthrough in the investigation occurred when Australian authorities seized mobile phones and digital devices from suspects arrested in Victoria state over the synagogue attack. Additionally, a stolen blue Volkswagen Golf sedan used in unrelated attacks was identified through CCTV footage from the night of December 6.
The Joint Counter Terrorism Team in Victoria accused Younes of stealing the car used in the attack and endangering lives by setting fire to the synagogue, which was occupied at the time. Giovanni Laulu, a co-accused, faced similar charges in court the previous month.
Police referred to the sedan as a “communal crime car” linked to other non-politically motivated attacks. Australian Federal Police’s then deputy commissioner mentioned that the attack was politically motivated and involved offshore criminals, with ongoing investigations including a deported Australian crime figure.
Authorities collaborated with the Five Eyes intelligence network, comprising Britain, the United States, Canada, and New Zealand, to gather information on the case. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke highlighted that local individuals involved may not have been aware of the orchestrators behind the attacks due to the involvement of intermediaries.