Expert warns ‘there will be a terrorist attack in Australia’

After the horrific attack on the Lindt Cafe in Sydney in 2014, Australia has been on edge over the threat of a terrorist attack.

Now military strategist David Kilcullen has issued a warning saying it is only a matter of time before we see another, possible even larger, attack.

Appearing on ABC show Q&A, Mr Kilcullen said Australians were “living in a dream land” if they thought they were safe from such an attack.

“It is inevitable that we will see at least some kind of terrorist attack here in Australia,” he said.

“The request here is how bad will it be, how we will respond, how will we focus on consequence management and on recovery from that kind of attack, and I don’t mean to be pessimistic but I think we have to be realistic that if you think that the government can protect you from any kind of terrorist attack, you are living in dream land.

“Just like these things happening in other countries, they will happen in Australia also.”

The warning left many viewers shaken and wondering how the government plans to safeguard them from a possible attack.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has already ruled out sending anymore Australian troops to the Middle East to fight Islamic State, saying that is a job for ‘muslim armies’.

Also appearing on Q&A was Raihan Ismail from the ANU centre for Arab and Islamic Studies, who said fighting Islamic State with bombs and armies was not the right way to defeat them and that “you can’t bomb an ideology”.

“By trying to bomb ISIS and go all out, you are not solving the problem at all,” Ms Ismail said.

“When you exaggerate the threat of terrorism in Australia, there are consequences.”

Fellow panelist Eldad Bec said defeating terrorist groups like Islamic State should be the responsibility of the Middle East and not western countries like Australia.

“And as the problem comes from the Middle East, I think it should at a certain point also be solved by the Middle East.”

What do think about this issue?

Do you worry about the threat of a possible terrorist attack in Australia? Do you think Australia should stay out of the fight against Islamic State?