The alleged attempt to bomb a peaceful Invasion Day rally in Perth has been formally declared an act of terrorism, triggering strong condemnation from Australia’s political leaders and intensifying scrutiny of racially motivated extremism following the first terrorism charge of its kind in Western Australia.
A 31-year-old man has been charged with engaging in a terrorist act under section 101.1 of the Criminal Code (Cth) after police alleged he threw a home-made improvised explosive device into a crowd gathered in Perth’s CBD on 26 January during a rally supporting First Nations people.
The device failed to detonate, but authorities say the act itself met the threshold for terrorism and carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
The charge was laid by the Western Australia Joint Counter Terrorism Team, comprising the Australian Federal Police, Western Australia Police and ASIO.
AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett said investigators were satisfied the high legal bar required for a terrorism charge had been met, alleging the act was carried out to advance a national, racially motivated ideological cause.
Police allege the man threw the device at 12.18 pm and was arrested by WA Police just minutes later. Within 40 minutes, the Joint Counter Terrorism Team had assumed control of the investigation under Operation Dumfries, triggering the activation of elevated Commonwealth powers and access to specialist counter-terrorism resources.
Commissioner Barrett said investigators had worked intensively to assess whether the accused acted alone and whether there was any ongoing risk to the community. She said authorities did not believe there was any residual threat at this stage, though the investigation remains active.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the alleged attack as terrorism driven by racism and hatred, saying the failure of the device to explode did not diminish the seriousness of the act. Speaking in parliament after being briefed by federal and state police commissioners, Mr Albanese said the intended consequences would have been catastrophic.
“The intended consequences would have, indeed, been horrific — death, injury, trauma beyond imagining,” he said.
He said the crowd was allegedly targeted because it was Indigenous and described the ideology behind the alleged act as hatred that should have been consigned to history but continued to fester online. Addressing First Nations communities directly, Mr Albanese said the government and the nation stood with them and recognised their right to protest peacefully without fear.
Western Australian Premier Roger Cook said the terrorism charge alleged the accused was motivated by hateful, racist ideology and described the incident as deeply confronting for the state. The attack took place in front of thousands of people, including families and Elders, on a date of heightened cultural and political significance.
WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch acknowledged public concern over the time taken to formally declare the incident an act of terror, explaining that investigators needed to establish intent and ideological motivation before laying a terrorism charge.
He said that while the act would instinctively be viewed as terrorism by the public, the legal threshold required detailed proof.
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley also condemned the alleged attack, urging calm and restraint while warning of the fragility of Australia’s social cohesion. She told parliament that Australians must nurture peaceful, civil debate and guard democracy against hate and violence, saying the country could never accept violence as a way of resolving political differences.
The announcement of the terrorism charge followed growing pressure from First Nations leaders for a stronger and clearer political response. Independent senator Lidia Thorpe accused national leaders of initially minimising the seriousness of the attack, saying racism and hate remained real and needed to be treated as such.
She moved a motion in parliament stating the government had a duty to protect all people equally from hate and violence, backed by several Labor First Nations senators.
In a joint statement, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke and Minister for Indigenous Australians Malarndirri McCarthy said the rapid engagement of the Joint Counter Terrorism Team ensured the investigation was handled by specialists from the outset. They said First Nations people, like all Australians, had the right to gather peacefully without fearing for their safety.
Commissioner Barrett used the announcement to issue a broader warning to individuals and groups advocating hate-driven violence, confirming the rollout of newly established AFP National Security Investigations Teams in Western Australia. She said these teams would take proactive action against those eroding social cohesion by mobilising hatred toward violence.
“This update is as much a warning as it is an update,” Commissioner Barrett said, noting that an individual was now facing life imprisonment because of their alleged actions. She urged anyone with information about extremist views or mobilisation toward violence to contact authorities or the National Security Hotline.
The accused remains in custody and is due to appear in Perth Magistrates Court on 17 February, where the Commonwealth terrorism charge will be heard alongside state-based offences.
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