BREAKING NEWS: Two men arrested in plot to 'bring down an plane with homemade bomb' are CHARGED with terrorism offences - as a third man remains in police custody
- Two alleged terrorists have been charged over planning to blow up a plane
- Khaled and Mahmoud Khayat allegedly plotted to take bomb on commercial jet
- A third man remains in police custody over alleged terror plot was thwarted
- Another arrested over the alleged plot was released without charge on Monday
Khaled and Mahmoud Khayat will each face two counts of terrorism-related charges, while a third man remains in police custody.
He is held under special anti-terror laws, while police investigations continue. He can be detained until the weekend under the current ruling.
'A 49-year-old Lakemba man and a 32-year-old Punchbowl man have each been charged with two counts of acts done in preparation for, or planning, a terrorist act,' Australian Federal Police said in a statement on Thursday.
They are due to face Parramatta Court on Friday morning, and if found guilty could face life behind bars.
A fourth man arrested over the alleged plot, Abdul Merhi, 50, was released without charge on Monday night.
Khaled Khayat (pictured) is one of the men who has been charged over a plot to blow up a commercial flight from Sydney
Four men (one pictured being led away by police) were arrested in dramatic raids in Sydney
It comes after it was revealed the alleged plot was thwarted at the last minute by staff at Sydney Airport's check-in desk because a bag allegedly containing a bomb was too heavy to carry on board.
Having allegedly picked an international flight as their target, the men were forced into a last-minute change of plans when the baggage wasn't allowed on the plane.
Neither the passenger or the bag ever made its way onto the passenger jet, which is believed to have been an Etihad Airways flight leaving Sydney for Abu Dhabi.
Australian authorities were reportedly only alerted by overseas intelligence agencies when the alleged conspiracy was revived.
Reports suggest the alleged terror cell planned to use a 'sacrificial lamb' to carry and detonate the bomb when on board the 500 seat passenger jet.
'The person was going to be blown up without knowing they were part of a suicide mission,' a source told The Daily Telegraph.
One of the accused is pictured with a bandaged head following his arrest on Saturday night
The target of the alleged terror plot was an Etihad flight from Sydney to Abu Dhabi with up to 500 passengers and crew on board (stock image)
Senior police on Thursday foreshadowed the charges, with NSW Police commissioner Mick Fuller describing the evidence as 'very strong'.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull echoed his words.
'Investigations have proceeded very well in terms of uncovering evidence. The police have uncovered very substantial evidence.' he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Fuller meanwhile backed the 'outstanding job' of his officers amid criticism one of the men arrested on Saturday but released without charge.
'We mobilised quickly and really from my perspective we stopped what could have been a terrible crime,' he said.
New South Wales Police officers arrive at a crime scene in Surry Hills in Sydney on Monday
One of the men who was arrested on Saturday is pictured with a bandaged head following the police raids
Mr Merhi's lawyer, Moustafa Kheir, has declared he will review 'what basis police had to do what they did' and said his client's life had been 'turned upside down' following his arrest and subsequent release.
Mr Fuller welcomed the scrutiny, saying he had a responsibility to protect the people of NSW.
The aviation terror threat level has been lowered to 'possible' on advice from Australia's spy agency ASIO. The threat level was raised to 'probable' when the plot was discovered.
'Travellers will see progressive adjustments to airport security over the next 24 hours,' Mr Turnbull said in a statement on Thursday.
'This includes a return to normal arrival times at airports for check-in as advised by your airline.'
Australian Federal Police and NSW Police officers are seen during the counter-terrorism raids
Officials previously told the ABC the Lebanese-Australian suspects are thought to have links to Islamic State in Syria.
Justice Minister Michael Keenan told the broadcaster he would not comment on the IS links, but stressed the significance of the attack if it had taken place.
'What is very clear is that, if these allegations were to have gone ahead, it would have been just an enormously dreadful thing to have happened to our country,' he said.
'It's clear that this has been inspired by radical Islamic ideology.'
Deakin University terror expert Greg Barton suggested the alleged plan may have centred around acetone peroxide - or TATP.
It was the same chemical used in this year's Manchester Arena bombing and Paris attacks in 2015.
Referred to as the 'mother of Satan' because it can kill those handling it, TATP is unstable but powerful and would not give off 'tell-tale' chemicals picked up by airport swab tests, Prof Barton said.
NSW Police and forensic officers at the scene of a counter-terrorism raid on a property in Cleveland Street in Surry Hills
Three men remain behind bars after police thwarted the alleged plot to detonate a gas bomb disguised as a meat mincer (stock image) on an Etihad flight bound for Abu Dhabi
'That makes it a candidate for using in this sort of attack.'
TATP, which needs a pressure vessel to be packed in, could be placed in a grinder so it was opaque through an X-ray machine and appeared innocuous upon visual inspection.
'It might just pass (security),' Prof Barton said. That, I'm guessing, was their plan.'
Authorities in Australia are remaining tight-lipped the arrests and refuse to confirm if they were triggered by a tip-off from an overseas intelligence agency.
Police are pictured at the scene of Saturday afternoon's terror raids in Surry Hills the following day
Federal and State Police officers are pictured at a crime scene in Surry Hills following the raids
US officials said communications between the alleged plotters in Sydney and ISIS militants in Syria were intercepted by a foreign spy service.
The officials declined to identify the service and authorities in Britain refused to confirm or deny playing a role in detecting the alleged plot.
Australia's national terror alert level was raised in September 2014 amid concerns over attacks by individuals inspired by organisations such as IS.
A total of 12 attacks, before the latest one, have been prevented in the past few years and 70 people have been charged.
Several terror attacks have taken place in Australia in recent years, including a Sydney cafe siege in 2014 which saw two hostages killed.
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