Sydney - Five Australian teenagers were arrested in Melbourne on Saturday on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks on police officers in the latest security scare in the country linked to militants, officials said.
The suspects included two 18-year-olds who are alleged to have been preparing an attack in the country, including targeting police, Australian federal police and Victoria state police said in a statement.
Seven warrants
Another 18-year-old was arrested on weapons charges and two other men, aged 18 and 19, were in custody and assisting police, according to the statement.
The arrests took place in Melbourne, where a joint counter-terrorism team served a total of seven warrants on Saturday morning. Police said they were conducting searches at properties.
Australia's government has raised the country's terror warning level in response to the domestic threat posed by supporters of the Islamic State group.
In September last year, the group's spokesperson Abu Mohammed al-Adnani issued a message urging attacks abroad, specifically mentioning Australia.
Double the number
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has warned that the terrorism threat in Australia has escalated with one-third of all terrorism-related arrests since 2001 occurring in the last six months.
At least 110 Australians have gone to Iraq and Syria to fight alongside extremists, and the nation's security agency is juggling more than 400 high-priority counter-terrorism investigations — more than double the number a year ago.