Intelligence chief David Irvine said that about 60 Australians are fighting in Syria or Iraq for the Islamic State or the Al Nusrah Front, and that 15 of them have died fighting there, two as suicide bombers. Irvine also warned that “dozens” have already returned home, and that another 100 Australians are known to be actively supporting jihadists groups at home by recruiting fighters, including suicide bombers, and assisting with financing. Officials said new counterterrorism units that began working at Australia’s airports a week ago have stopped two would-be jihadists from traveling abroad to fight. The trial of Adnan Karabegovic, 26, suspected of planning to carry out al Qaeda-inspired terrorist acts, has been postponed. Authorities continue to monitor the activities of the relatives of the Pendennis Nine, an al Qaeda-linked terrorist group uncovered in 2005, which are thought now to extend to fighting for the Islamic State in Syria or Iraq.
