Somali-born terrorist who carried out Bourke Street attack is the brother of an 'ISIS sympathiser whose bomb plot was foiled'

  • The brother of the Bourke Street terrorist revealed to be an 'ISIS sympathiser'
  • Ali Khalif Shire Ali will face Supreme Court trial over a foiled alleged terror plot
  • His brother, Mohamed Khalif, was shot and killed by officers after a terror attack
  • Police said Khalif was a 'person of interest' due to relatives' potential terror links

By Alex Chapman and Brittany Chain and Nic White For Daily Mail Australia

Published: 10:14 EST, 9 November 2018 | Updated: 10:14 EST, 9 November 2018

The brother of the knife-wielding Somali terrorist who stabbed three men, one fatally, in Melbourne's inner-city has been revealed as an 'ISIS sympathiser' who allegedly planned to execute a major terrorist attack.

The brother of the Bourke Street terrorist has been revealed as alleged 'ISIS sympathiser' Ali Khalif Shire Ali (pictured)

The brother of the Bourke Street terrorist has been revealed as alleged 'ISIS sympathiser' Ali Khalif Shire Ali (pictured)

Mohamed Khalif, also known as Hassan Shire, 31, was shot and killed by police after deliberately crashing a car filled with 'barbecue-style gas bottles' and rampaging through Melbourne's Bourke Street with a long knife on Friday afternoon.

In a press conference, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton said Khalif was well known to counter-terrorism officials due to his relatives' links to terror.

Khalif's 21-year-old brother, Ali Khalif Shire Ali, was arrested in November of 2017 in relation to a foiled terror attack in Federation Square, also in the heart of Melbourne.

Police allegedly intercepted plans late last year to attack Melbourne's cultural arts precinct on New Years Eve 2017.

Police allegedly intercepted Ali's (pictured) plans to attack Melbourne's cultural arts precinct on New Years Eve 2017

Police allegedly intercepted Ali's (pictured) plans to attack Melbourne's cultural arts precinct on New Years Eve 2017

Police say Khalif (pictured) was a 'person of interest' due to relatives' potential links to extremist groups

Police say Khalif (pictured) was a 'person of interest' due to relatives' potential links to extremist groups

Khalif and his family were known to the Australian Secret Intelligence Organisation after his younger brother was arrested for allegedly attempting the foiled New Year's Eve 2017 attack, the Herald Sun reported. 

Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting Ali had any involvement in Friday's Bourke Street attack.

Ali was arrested and charged last November and had been the target of an undercover operation by the Australian Federal Police' (AFP) Joint-Counter-Terrorism Team, Melbourne's Supreme Court heard in June.

Federal agent Jonathan Bedford said officers had been monitoring Ali's activities very closely and 'sometimes daily' in March-April last year, the court was told. 

Ali will face a Supreme Court trial after pleading not guilty to the accusations.

A knifeman stabbed a shopper to death on Melbourne's Bourke Street Mall and injured two others. A body was seen lying on the street covered in a white sheet

A knifeman stabbed a shopper to death on Melbourne's Bourke Street Mall and injured two others. A body was seen lying on the street covered in a white sheet

His brother Khalif, who also goes by the name Hassan Shire, was rushed to hospital on Friday in a critical condition but later died from gun wounds. 

Video shot from the scene showed the frenzied attack that carried on for more than a minute, beginning with Khalif charging at two police officers, punching one through a vehicle window and lunging at them with a knife.

The Islamic State have claimed the attack as their own via the propaganda platform, releasing a statement saying 'the perpetrator of the operation... in Melbourne... was an Islamic State fighter and carried out the operation... to target nationals of the coalition' fighting IS, Amaq reported, allegedly quoting a jihadist security source.

ISIS have previously claimed responsibility for attacks that were later discovered to be unrelated to the organisation.

Khalif's passport was cancelled several years ago after he was noted as one of 300 potential security risks.

It was also noted police are unable to get in contact with Khalif's wife and believe she is both missing and radicalised.

Authorities may be hoping to utilise the state's preventative detention laws for the first time since they came into effect, in which police are legally allowed to detain a suspect for up to seven days should they believe the person poses a threat or security risk, Herald Sun reported.

The man again attempted to stab and slash at the officers several times before one policeman unsuccessfully tried to taser him
The other policeman shot the assailant in the chest and he clutched his chest and and fell to the ground

Video showed a man wielding a knife attempt to stab and slash at two police officers before he was shot and fell to the ground, and also a brave shopper try to hit him with a trolley

The officers then retreated to the other side of the road as the bearded attacker with a shaved head and dressed in a long brown tunic, pursued them as horrified bystanders called on police to shoot him

The officers then retreated to the other side of the road as the bearded attacker with a shaved head and dressed in a long brown tunic, pursued them as horrified bystanders called on police to shoot him

Khalif chased the officers around a tree as they tried to avoid his blows and convince the man to surrender, and a brave bystander tried to stop the attack by running him down with a shopping trolley.

The officers then retreated to the other side of the road as the bearded attacker with a shaved head and dressed in a long brown tunic pursued them as horrified bystanders begged police to shoot him.

Khalif again attempted to stab and slash at the officers several times before one policeman unsuccessfully tried to taser him.

His partner then shot the assailant in the chest.

The knifeman clutched his chest and and fell to the ground where he was quickly arrested on the pavement by two plain clothing officers and rushed to hospital under police guard, where he later died on the operating table.

The man was quickly arrested on the pavement by two officers in front of shocked pedestrians who stood back to film it
He was rushed to hospital under police guard in a critical condition

The man was quickly arrested on the pavement by two officers in front of shocked pedestrians who stood back to film it

His possible links to known terror plotters and extremist elements of the North African community in Australia are being investigated.

Khalif moved to Australia from Somalia in the 1990s, Victoria Police commissioner Graham Ashton said, and had a record of 'minor' offences in relation to 'cannabis use, theft and driving offences'.

Mr Ashton was asked about reports from eyewitnesses that Khalif screamed 'Alluha Akhbar' as he chased pedestrians, to which he could not confirm. 

'He is known to police and is known mainly in respect to relatives he has that are certainly persons of interest.'

Victoria Police commissioner Graham Ashton and Premier Daniel Andrews spoke at a press conference after the attack

Victoria Police commissioner Graham Ashton and Premier Daniel Andrews spoke at a press conference after the attack

Two victims lie on the ground in pools of blood after being stabbed by the knifeman in the street, as bystanders rush to their aid

Two victims lie on the ground in pools of blood after being stabbed by the knifeman in the street, as bystanders rush to their aid

Witnesses said the car hit a pedestrian as it mounted the kerb outside Target near the Swanson Street intersection about 4.20pm on Friday

Witnesses said the car hit a pedestrian as it mounted the kerb outside Target near the Swanson Street intersection about 4.20pm on Friday

Witnesses described a chaotic scene with an injured pedestrian lying on the ground, and numerous police cars and helicopters flying overhead.

'Police response was swift and overwhelming. I heard at least one gunshot initially,' one said.

Another said they heard 'what sounded like a bomb and gun shot'.

'Roads are blocked and police advising to stay away from Bourke St. Feels like de ja vu,' they said, referring to the car attack on Bourke Street Mall last year that killed six people.

Panicked pedestrians ran in all directions away from the scene, some hiding in nearby cafes and shops, locking themselves in back rooms.

The area was locked down and the public shooed away while stores including Myer, Target, and David Jones evacuated and the bomb squad was called in to assess the car.

The burned-out car sitting where it crashed on to the pavement and exploded before the rampage began

The burned-out car sitting where it crashed on to the pavement and exploded before the rampage began

The area was locked down with the public shooed away and stores including Myer, Target, and David Jones evacuated and the bomb squad called in to assess the car

The area was locked down with the public shooed away and stores including Myer, Target, and David Jones evacuated and the bomb squad called in to assess the car

Police are asking people to avoid the area and said more information would be given when it was available

Police are asking people to avoid the area and said more information would be given when it was available

Another bystander said they heard 'what sounded like a bomb and gun shot' during the attack

Another bystander said they heard 'what sounded like a bomb and gun shot' during the attack

Warnings blared from the newly-installed terror warning loudspeakers for the first time, saying: 'This is Victoria Police, please evacuate the area. This is Victoria Police, please evacuate the area.'

The fire was brought under control within about five minutes, a Metropolitan Fire Brigade spokeswoman said. 

The fire brigade initially discovered 'BBQ style gas cylinders' inside the vehicle, but the bomb squad 'rendered them useless' shortly thereafter.

Police are asking people to avoid the area, saying the streets may be blocked off until as late as 8am Saturday morning.

Witnesses said the Holden Rodeo hit a pedestrian as it mounted the kerb and burst into flames outside Target near the Swanson Street intersection about 4.20pm on Friday, before the stabbing rampage began

Witnesses said the Holden Rodeo hit a pedestrian as it mounted the kerb and burst into flames outside Target near the Swanson Street intersection about 4.20pm on Friday, before the stabbing rampage began

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Somali-born 'ISIS sympathiser' brother of Bourke Street terrorist 'planned major terrorist attack' 

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