SYDNEY: The Australian government has stripped citizenship from a man it believes is a top recruiter for Daesh, Australia’s home affairs minister said on Saturday.
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said in an emailed statement to Reuters that Melbourne-born Neil Prakash has been stripped of his citizenship.
Prakash has been in Turkey on trial for terrorism-related activities since being caught there in October 2016 after leaving Daesh-controlled territory.
He is wanted in Australia over terrorism-related activities including an alleged plot to behead a Melbourne police officer on Anzac Day.
“My first priority is and always will be the safety and security of all Australians,” Dutton said in his statement. “This Government is determined to deal with foreign terrorist fighters as far from our shores as possible.”
Prakash, whose mother was Cambodian and father was Fijian Indian, held both Australian and Fijian citizenship through his father.
Under Australia’s citizenship laws, a dual national can lose their Australian citizenship if they act contrary to their allegiance to Australia by choosing to be involved in terrorism. Prakash is the 12th person to be stripped of citizenship.
Daesh was declared a terrorist organization in May 2016 for this purpose, the Home Affairs Office said in its statement.
“To be in the service of such a terrorist organization, as Mr.Prakash was, is to act inconsistently with your allegiance to Australia and we will do everything we can to ensure he is brought to account for his crimes,” Dutton said.
The decision came into effect on Dec. 21 when Prakash was notified by letter, and the Fijian government has also been notified according to a source close to the Australian government.
Prakash has been linked to several Australia-based attack plans and has appeared in Daesh videos and magazines. Australia has alleged that he actively recruited Australian men, women and children and encouraged acts of militancy.
Australia has been pressing Turkey to extradite Prakash since he was first detained, but the request was rejected in July. It will remain in place until the conclusion of his case and any custodial sentence, The Australian newspaper reported.
Canberra canceled Prakash’s passport in 2014 and announced financial sanctions in 2015, including anyone giving him financial assistance, with punishment of up to 10 years in jail.
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Australia strips citizenship from alleged Daesh recruiter
Australia strips citizenship from alleged Daesh recruiter
- Prakash has been linked to several Australia-based attack plans and has appeared in Daesh videos and magazines
Chile police arrest suspect over deadly wildfires
- Suspect used a liquid accelerant to start fires in a wheat field, with authorities seizing five liters of fuel from him
LIRQUEN, Chile: Police in south-central Chile have arrested a man on suspicion of starting one of the recent wildfires that killed 21 people and razed entire neighborhoods, the government said Wednesday.
Security Minister Luis Cordero said the suspect used a liquid accelerant to start fires in a wheat field, with authorities seizing five liters (more than a gallon) of fuel from him.
He was arrested at dawn in the town of Perquenco in Araucania region, south of Biobio.
The fires began simultaneously on Saturday in various parts of Biobio and Nuble regions, about 500 kilometers (310 miles) south of the capital Santiago.
Fanned by strong winds and high temperatures, the flames quickly ripped through the coastal towns of Penco, Lirquen and Punta de Parra, leaving a blackened landscape of smoldering ruins.
Interior Minister Alvaro Elizalde told a press conference on Wednesday that an estimated 20,000 people suffered property damage from the fires, including some 800 homes that were destroyed.
President Gabriel Boric visited Biobio on Wednesday, where he said: “We’re working with heavy machinery to clear streets and remove debris, and we continue fighting the fire.
“We’re still in a state of emergency,” he added.
Other fires were later reported further inland, in the Biobio town of Florida, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of the city of Concepcion and in Araucania.
Cordero said substances used to start fires, including plastic containers containing accelerant, were found in Concepcion.
Firefighters were still battling 35 blazes Wednesday — 22 in Biobio, five in Nuble and eight in Araucania, according to national forestry officials.
A drop in temperature in recent days has helped ease the situation.
“We managed to reduce the intensity of the fire,” Carlos Zulieta, a firefighter in Florida said, adding that it was now advancing “more slowly.”
The government said it would pay compensation of $700 to $1,500 to victims.
Aid began trickling into affected areas on Wednesday.
Municipal workers and private companies were delivering portable toilets and generators to Lirquen, where some families are camped out in the ruins of their homes.
In February 2024, wildfires broke out around the coastal resort of Vina del Mar, 110 kilometers from Santiago, leaving 138 dead.
Investigations revealed that firefighters and forestry brigade members started the fire, which spread rapidly due in part to high temperatures during the southern hemisphere’s summer.
Security Minister Luis Cordero said the suspect used a liquid accelerant to start fires in a wheat field, with authorities seizing five liters (more than a gallon) of fuel from him.
He was arrested at dawn in the town of Perquenco in Araucania region, south of Biobio.
The fires began simultaneously on Saturday in various parts of Biobio and Nuble regions, about 500 kilometers (310 miles) south of the capital Santiago.
Fanned by strong winds and high temperatures, the flames quickly ripped through the coastal towns of Penco, Lirquen and Punta de Parra, leaving a blackened landscape of smoldering ruins.
Interior Minister Alvaro Elizalde told a press conference on Wednesday that an estimated 20,000 people suffered property damage from the fires, including some 800 homes that were destroyed.
President Gabriel Boric visited Biobio on Wednesday, where he said: “We’re working with heavy machinery to clear streets and remove debris, and we continue fighting the fire.
“We’re still in a state of emergency,” he added.
Other fires were later reported further inland, in the Biobio town of Florida, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of the city of Concepcion and in Araucania.
Cordero said substances used to start fires, including plastic containers containing accelerant, were found in Concepcion.
Firefighters were still battling 35 blazes Wednesday — 22 in Biobio, five in Nuble and eight in Araucania, according to national forestry officials.
A drop in temperature in recent days has helped ease the situation.
“We managed to reduce the intensity of the fire,” Carlos Zulieta, a firefighter in Florida said, adding that it was now advancing “more slowly.”
The government said it would pay compensation of $700 to $1,500 to victims.
Aid began trickling into affected areas on Wednesday.
Municipal workers and private companies were delivering portable toilets and generators to Lirquen, where some families are camped out in the ruins of their homes.
In February 2024, wildfires broke out around the coastal resort of Vina del Mar, 110 kilometers from Santiago, leaving 138 dead.
Investigations revealed that firefighters and forestry brigade members started the fire, which spread rapidly due in part to high temperatures during the southern hemisphere’s summer.
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