CANBERRA, June 27 (Xinhua) -- The Australian government has listed an online nationalist extremist network as a terrorist organization.
Tony Burke, the Minister for Home Affairs, on Friday announced that Terrorgram has been officially deemed a terrorist group under the criminal code following consultation with national security and intelligence agencies.
It means that any Australian who is a member of, recruits for, trains with, funds or supports the online network will face a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison.
Burke described the group as a "nationalist and racist violent extremist organization" and said that officially listing it as a terrorist organization gives security agencies significantly more power to restrict its operations in Australia and stop it from promoting violent extremism.
He said in a statement that members of the group, which operates on decentralized and encrypted platforms, create and distribute propaganda to inspire terrorist attacks on minorities, infrastructure and specific individuals.
"This group fosters and promotes an ideology that would seek to make some Australians feel unwelcome in their home. It is this extremist hatred which is not welcome and has no place in Australia," he said.
The federal government in February imposed counter-terrorism sanctions on Terrorgram that made it a criminal offense for Australians to use or deal with the group's assets or make assets available to it. ■
