Andrew Hastie (Canning, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, I present the committee's report entitled Review of the listing of Islamic State Khorasan Province and the re-listing of al-Murabitun as terrorist organisations under the Criminal Code.

Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e).

by leave—I am pleased to present the committee's report on the listing of Islamic State Khorasan Province and the relisting of al-Murabitun as terrorist organisations under the Criminal Code.

The Criminal Code enables the committee to review the listing of terrorist organisations and report its findings to the parliament within the 15-day disallowance period.

This is the first time Islamic State Khorasan Province has been listed as a terrorist organisation. Islamic State Khorasan Province is a recognised partner of Islamic State with an estimated membership of up to 11,000 members. The group's primary objective is to establish the province of Khorasan (a region encompassing Afghanistan, Pakistan and Central Asia) as part of the global caliphate of Islamic State. Since 2015, the group has claimed responsibility for a number of attacks including suicide bomb attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Al-Murabitun is an al-Qaeda aligned Sunni Islamic terrorist group that is committed to enforcing sharia law in West Africa and uniting Muslims and Islamic movements across Africa against non-Muslim and secular influences.

The group was first declared a terrorist organisation by the Australian government in November 2014. Since then the group has reaffirmed its alliance to al-Qaeda and continues to conduct attacks in West Africa. The group funds its activities through smuggling, connections with other terrorist organisations and kidnappings for ransom. In 2016, the group kidnapped Australian citizens Jocelyn and Kenneth Elliott. The group claimed the primary motive for this kidnapping was to gain the release of their captives. Jocelyn Elliott was released but Kenneth Elliott, sadly, has not yet been recovered.

In conducting its review, the committee considered publicly available information and carefully reviewed the procedures followed by the government and the merits of the listings themselves.

The committee was satisfied that appropriate processes had been followed and that both organisations should be listed as terrorist organisations.

The committee therefore supports the listing of Islamic State Khorasan Province and the relisting of al-Murabitun, and finds no reason to disallow the legislative instruments.

I commend this report to the House.