Global terrorism thread

A 15-year-old boy, thought to be the youngest Briton to be convicted of a terrorism offence, was given a life sentence on Friday for inciting an attack on a World War One commemorative event in Australia from his bedroom in northern England.

The boy, who cannot be named due to his age, pleaded guilty in July to sending messages online encouraging an attack on police officers at an event in April to mark Anzac Day - a day of remembrance for military dead in Australia and New Zealand. He was just 14 at the time.

The discovery of the boy's actions sparked a massive police operation in Melbourne, which led to the arrest of five teenagers who were planning an Islamic State-inspired attack on an event to mark the centenary of the Gallipoli landings, Australian authorities said.

British police said had the plot not been uncovered, it was likely someone would have been seriously injured or killed.

"From the early communication we could read, it was obvious the Anzac Day memorial service was going to be a target," said Detective Chief Superintendent Tony Mole of the North West Counter Terrorism Unit.

"People will be understandably be shocked by the age of the boy. However, this should not detract from the horror of what he was planning."

The boy from Blackburn, who had admitted a charge of inciting another person to commit an act of terrorism, was sentenced to life in a youth detention centre and will have to serve a minimum of five years.

Manchester Crown Court heard he was initially arrested by police on suspicion of making threats to kill his teacher. When detectives examined his phone they found extreme images, including a screen saver of Islamic State militants.

There was also evidence he had searched the internet for instructions on making explosives and building a detonator from scratch.

During nine days in March he shared more than 3,000 heavily encrypted messages with fellow plotter "Illyas" in Australia, in which they discussed a plan to run over a police officer at an Anzac Day parade.

The boy also suggested Illyas break into someone's house to "get your first taste of beheading" and they shared images, including an exact replica of a knife used in the "Rambo" films. The boy said it had a handle which is "perfect for tearing through throat".

Reports are coming in from Sydney that armed police killed a 15-year old teen who killed someone walking out of NSW Police headquarters.

Pakistani man accused of plotting a suicide bombing in Toronto’s financial district because he thought killing Canadians was his “path to heaven” has been deported, several sources confirmed Thursday.

Jahanzeb Malik left Montreal airport escorted by Canada Border Services Agency officers. Meanwhile, a second Pakistani man also deemed a danger to security, Mohammed Aqeeq Ansari, was deported from Toronto.

The CBSA declined to comment but Malik’s lawyer, Anser Farooq, confirmed his client had departed Canada. Ansari’s parents were summoned to a location near Toronto airport late Wednesday to see him off, a friend said.

The removals followed weeks of diplomacy between Canada and Pakistan, which was reluctant to take the men back. The deportations were delayed for almost three months amid a flurry of meetings between the two countries.

Iraq's most powerful Shiite cleric called for a global war against ISIS on Friday, a day after the prime minister said he would welcome Russian airstrikes against the group on his country's soil.

Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who has a huge following and can often influence government thinking, was speaking through an aide after nationally televised Friday prayers.

"Battle with Daesh is destined for all Iraqis," said Sistani, using an Arabic acronym for ISIS. "But it's not their battle alone but the whole world, because terrorists target with their dark ideology all humanity, its culture and morals."

He added: "It's essential to join together all efforts and expand the parameters of countering this movement."

The United States has led airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq for more than a year, but Baghdad has repeatedly called for engagement and air support for Iraqi forces trying to regain territory against the ultra-hardline Sunni group.

Russia began bombing raids in Syria on Wednesday against groups fighting the forces of President Bashar Assad, which include ISIS.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Thursday his government would welcome Russian airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq.

Asked by France 24 television whether he had discussed airstrikes with Russia in his country, Abadi said: "Not yet ... It is a possibility. If we get the offer we will consider it and I would welcome it."

Only a tiny fraction of Russian airstrikes are targeting ISIS in an ongoing bombing campaign Moscow vowed to escalate.

A day after Russia promised to escalate its Syria bombing campaign, Moscow continued to insist it is striking Islamic State targets in areas where the terror group isn’t located.

Russia’s ministry of defense posted two videos to social media on Sunday allegedly showing attacks on ISIS posts near Jisr el-Shughur, a northwestern Syrian city in the administrative district of Idlib. But ISIS withdrew from the Idlib province early last year.

Russia did attack ISIS on Friday, three days into its bombing campaign, when it hit the Syrian city of Raqqa. Still, just one in 20 Russian strikes have targeted Islamic State fighters, the British defense secretary said over the weekend, the AFP reported. He said strikes have instead hit civilian areas and others where the Free Syrian Army is located in an effort to support Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad.

Russian jets on Sunday also struck areas in and around the town of Talbiseh, according to reports, including one from an activist inside Syria. A video also claims to show smoke billowing in the aftermath of a Russian attack on residential areas in the town. Some rebel groups operate around Talbiseh under the Free Syrian Army, Reuters reported.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Russian strikes also hit neighboring Hama, where Islamic State fighters are located. Five people were killed in another airstrike near the city, according to a group of Syrian activists.

The widening bombing campaign and reports of civilian deaths have fanned the flames of outrage among many inside Syria, including a group of 100 members of the Free Syrian Army. Over the weekend, they denounced what they describe as a “Russian and Iranian occupation” in Syria, and vowed to unite “strength, means and expertise” to confront it.

Another rebel group in northern Syria, Ahrar el-Sham, published a video over the weekend showing its fighters allegedly launching rockets on an airport near Syria’s Latakia, where Russian forces are positioned.