Brother of Bourke St attacker renounces Islamic State
A man who admitted planning a New Year’s Eve terror attack in Melbourne has told a court he “was just an angry person” as he apologised for his actions and said he had “lost all sympathy” for Islamic State.
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The brother of a knife-wielding Bourke Street terrorist, who admitted planning a New Year’s Eve terror attack in Melbourne, has apologised for his actions and renounced ISIS.
Ali Khalif Shire Ali, 22, admitted planning a terror attack in Melbourne involving shooting civilians and taking hostages at Federation Square in 2017. “I’m deeply sorry for what my actions were...I was just an angry person,” Ali told the Victorian Supreme Court on Thursday.
He said he was angry and confused during the year.
During his plea hearing he admitted he was wanted to get a high-powered weapon to shoot people while they celebrated New Year’s Eve at Federation Square. When questioned on his current thoughts about ISIS he renounced the terrorist group.
“I hate them for the actions they committed, the innocent lives they have taken for no reason,” Ali told the court.
He also said the group had influenced his brother, who carried out the 2018 Bourke Street attack, and his death helped changed his view.
“That was just the icing on the cake, I completely lost all sympathy for ISIS,” he told the court.
While he said he initially hated the police and counter-terrorism authorities, his view had changed.
“If they hadn’t intervened there could have been a loss of life.
“I’m thankful there was an intervention.”
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Ali is the younger brother of 30-year-old Hassan Khalif Shire Ali, who fatally stabbed Pellegrini’s Espresso Bar owner Sisto Malaspina, 74, in November last year.
The killer was shot at the scene by police and later died in hospital.
The younger Ali has been in custody since November 2017, when police arrested him at a Werribee shopping strip.
Ali admitted trying to buy a gun for the attack and was described as an “ISIL sympathiser”.