Australian Charged With Funding ISIS

An Australian man has been charged with making funds available to terrorist organizations, including ISIS and an al Qaeda affiliate. Hassan El Sabsabi, 23, was arrested Tuesday in Melbourne for funneling $12,000 to a U.S. citizen fighting in Syria, according to the Australian Federal Police (AFP). Sabsabi is charged with six counts of intentionally making funds available to the terrorist organizations, including ISIS and the Al-Nusra Front. The arrest was the “culmination of an eight-month investigation” following a tip from the FBI, said AFP Assistant Commissioner Neil Gaughan. Federal and state police raided more than 100 properties. When Sabsabi was briefly brought to court, investigators said they had intercepted hundreds of phone calls and more than 25,000 pages of material on him. Sabsabi did not enter a plea or ask for bail. Gaughan said police acted because there was concern Sabsabi would make another transaction in the immediate future. He added that this marked the first time Australian police were aware "someone has sponsored someone to go and fight.” Australia’s terror alert was raised to high this month.