Australian teenager arrested involving memorial day terror plot

An Australian teenager has been arrested and charged with plotting to commit a terror attack on the nation's national day of remembrance, the second in many years.

Australian counter-terrorism authorities arrested a 16-year-old teenager at his western Sydney home late Sunday, just hours before people gathered to commemorate the nation's fallen serviceman and women on the anniversary of the World War One landings in Gallipoli in Turkey.

"At this stage we believe it was one person by himself," New South Wales state Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione told reporters on Monday.

"The risk from this particular threat has been thwarted."

Australia, a U.S. ally in the "fight against terrorism", has been on heightened alert for attacks by homegrown radicals since 2014, with authorities arresting numerous suspects in connection to domestic plots.

"Yesterday's activity is another example of the effectiveness of the cooperative nature of the (Joint Counter Terrorism Team)," Australian Federal Police NSW state commander Chris Sheehan said.

"We will disrupt to ensure the safety of the community, and follow that up with thorough investigations to identify criminal behavior."

Authorities however are becoming increasingly concerned about the young age of those being radicalized following after five teenagers were arrested in Melbourne, along with a 14-year-old boy in Britain, for allegedly planning a terror attack at similar events last year.

"In Australia and around the world, the age of people radicalized is getting younger, with online grooming tactics similar to those used by sexual predators," Sheehan said.

In early December 2015, Australian counter-terrorism authorities arrested a 20-year-old man and a 15-year-old teenager in connection with an alleged plot targeting Australian government buildings, including the Australian Federal Police (AFP) headquarters in Sydney.

The two men and three others already in jail on related charges are believed to be associates, though no direct links, of those who radicalized a teenager who executed police accountant Curtis Cheng in early October 2015.

In late February, the teenage bride of an Australian terrorism suspect was arrested by counter-terrorism authorities for allegedly possessing a knife, an Islamic State flag and documents relating to a terror attack. Her husband is already in custody on terror related charges. Endit