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Adelaide woman 'pledged allegiance to Islamic State', counter terror police say

A 22-year-old woman has been arrested in Adelaide and will be accused of being a member of terrorist group Islamic State.

A joint operation from the Australian Federal Police, South Australia Police and ASIO saw the Australian citizen arrested without incident in Adelaide's western suburbs on Tuesday morning.

Police said they became alerted to the woman's online activities when she attempted to travel overseas but was stopped.

They will allege she "cultivated relationships" online with Islamic State members and pledged her allegiance to the terrorist group.

South Australia Police deputy commissioner Linda Williams stressed there was no ongoing threat. Photo: 7 News
South Australia Police deputy commissioner Linda Williams stressed there was no ongoing threat. Photo: 7 News

They stressed there was no connection to the events in Manchester and said there was no threat to Adelaide or Australia.

AFP Assistant Commissioner Counter Terrorism Ian McCartney said a search warrant was executed on Tuesday morning and the woman was arrested without incident.

“It is concerning that people so young remain susceptible to extremist ideologies and are willing to engage in criminal activities that attract significant penalties," he said



“We target criminals and criminal activity, not ideologies or backgrounds. The Joint Counter Terrorism Team will closely examine any individual that supports an extremist group."

He said the woman was an Australian citizen who arrived in Australia from Somalia when she was 14.

Police would not comment on what she was studying, where she worked or the nature of their investigation.

AFP Assistant Commissioner Counter Terrorism Ian McCartney said there was no link between the Adelaide arrest and the suspected terrorist attack in Manchester. Photo: 7 News
AFP Assistant Commissioner Counter Terrorism Ian McCartney said there was no link between the Adelaide arrest and the suspected terrorist attack in Manchester. Photo: 7 News

South Australia Police deputy commissioner Linda Williams stressed there was no ongoing threat to South Australians.

“I would like to emphasise to the South Australian community that the accused has been charged with membership of a terrorism organisation, not with specifically planning an attack," she told the media on Tuesday afternoon.

The woman was due to appear in court later on Tuesday, deputy commissioner Williams said.