Members of Australian charity allegedly raise funds for IS

Members of an Australian charity, set up to help Syrian orphans, are under investigation for alleged links to Islamic State (IS), Australian media reported on Friday.

Dar al Quran wa Sunnah was set up to help children orphaned by the Syrian civil war but has come under scrutiny by Lebanese and Australian authorities after the arrest of one of its members in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on May 2.

Ibrahim Barakat appeared before a military court in Lebanon on Friday and faced charges of fundraising for jihadists, recruiting for IS and fighting against the Lebanese army, according to an Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) report.

He had allegedly attempted to leave Tripoli for Turkey, a common entry point to Islamic State-controlled areas, using a false name and carrying 7,100 U.S. dollars.

Two other dual Australian-Lebanese members of the Sydney-based charity are also under investigation for their fundraising activities, the ABC said.

In Australia, the commissioner for Australia's charity watchdog Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC) said the allegations against Barakat and the other two men would trigger an investigation.

"That would be a very serious matter and, I might add, that would be a matter not only of interest to the ACNC, but the intelligence and security agencies," Susan Pascoe told the ABC on Friday.

The Australian Federal Police declined to confirm or deny whether the charity was under investigation.

The ABC said charity's Arabic-language Facebook page makes regular reference to "martyrs who have died fighting in Syria," in stark contrast to its English-language page that often posts images of aid being handed out.

One post on the Arabic page, uploaded in 2013, featured Osama bin Laden with the caption "of the faithful men."

The charity's website was taken offline on Friday.

Dar al Quran wa Sunnah was established in December 2012 and is due to submit its first financial statement to ACNC in January next year.

Ten Australian charities have had their charity status revoked as a result of an investigation in the past two years.

Financing terrorism has been included in proposed laws that would see dual nationals stripped of their Australian citizenship if engaged in financing terrorist activities inside or outside Australia.

Barakat will appear before the military court in Lebanon on Nov. 11 and could face up to ten years' jail. Endi