Last night in a TV interview about a new building for ASIO, it was disclosed that ASIO was investigating "hundreds of Australian-Lebanese young men that had joined the fighting in Syria"

Today there is no reports in the MSM about this disclosure and I have not seen any referral to this beforehand. Now I would expect there would be a few, but 'hundreds' is a surprize.

Obviously there is much more to this. Why lebanese and the connection with Syria? Are they supporting one side or both sides in the conflict? It raises many questions. Apparently most were born here and are Aus citizens.

Does anyone on OLO have any further information?

Dear Banjo,

There's quite a few links on the web
concerning this issue. All you have to
do is Google the topic.

ASIO and other
spy agencies are monitoring Australians
fighting in Syria.

However, as ASIO's Director, David Irvine
pointed out that while the number of Australians
heading to Syria is in the hundreds this does not
mean that all of them are directly involved in
fighting.

" That doesn't mean that hundreds of people go
overseas, join the Al Qaeda affiliates, get an AK-47
and go and fight. Many of the people are providing
supporting functions, health, medical, or whatever.
They're supporting the struggle in ways that don't
involve picking up a gun."

Mr Irvine has explained that there are strong family
as well as business connections that are understandable
reasons for supporting the struggle in Syria.

Here's a link that may be of interest:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-04-15/spy-agencies-monitoring-australians-fighting-in-syria/4630098

Banjo in the mess that is the middle east, we overlook that Lebanon was if not part of Syria ruled by it once.
Many country,s milked the middle east cash cow, look and find England alone created new country,s.
Divide and conquer?
Yes we know the thought, *Multi cultorism* is a teddy bear, just a new name for what replaced our once intergeneration /migration is a lie.
But in truth todays events in Boston may impact on that policy.
I have an inkling that may not be driven by such as your thread mentions.
Frankly we are going to pay, for governments refusing to consider what these now trained fighters may bring back to this country.
ASIO? you trust some weird folk bloke, not sure they could manage a drinking comp in a country pub.

Lexi,
Thanks for that link. ASIO is not a site I regularly check, in fact have never, so how would I know what they post there. I will look at it shortly. I fully expected the item to be MSM news. If I were running the government, I would be concerned if hundreds of aussies were going halfway across the world to fight and support a war that we had no part of. It is not as though we are sending troops. It is a civil conflict.

Belly,
I don't particularly care what happens in the Middle East, it is a lost cause. What does concern me is that these young blokes care more for some civil uprising there than they do about Australia. Where does their nationalism lay? It is usual for Leb youth to hold our society in contempt and yet they take all our society offers them. No doubt thay will seek our consular assistance if things don't go to plan, like David Hicks did.

How many will come back here radicalised and trained in urban warfare?

Belly, we have no one else to trust with inteligence services. ASIO and the AFP got over 20 would be terrorists here so far, so they must be worth something.

About time we had a look at our immigration policies, last year we allowed about 13000 migrants from ME countries.

Dear Banjo,

Perhaps you need glasses?

The site I gave was the ABC.

Lexi,
Its OK, I did read ABC and got the article up, nothing more than was on TV last night though. I also did google ASIO and It has no news items and nothing in speeches about this issue.

Perhaps I had better google the Atorney General, if it is a concern to the government surely he has put out a media release.

Obviously MSM are not interested.