Cases
Terrorism Prosecutions — Sydney Network
R v El Matari [2021] NSWSC 1260
Supreme Court of New South Wales · 2021Sentencing of Isaac El Matari for terrorism preparation and foreign incursion. Self-declared "IS Commander Australia." Sentenced to 7 years 4 months. Continued recruiting from prison—3-page insurgency letter modelled on the Philippines.
R v Uweinat [2021] NSWSC 1256
Supreme Court of New South Wales · 2021Sentencing of Youssef Uweinat for ISIS membership and advocating terrorism. Recruited at age 14 by street preachers. Created propaganda targeting Parliament House and Sydney landmarks. Sentenced to 3 years 11 months.
R v Azari (No 12) [2019] NSWSC 314
Supreme Court of New South Wales · 2019Sentencing of Omarjan Azari for planning terrorist act and funding ISIS. Part of Operation Appleby (2014 raids). Discussed domestic attacks in intercepted phone call with Mohammad Ali Baryalei in Syria. Sentenced to 18 years.
R v Lawrence [2023] NSWSC 1428
Supreme Court of New South Wales · 2023Sentencing of Tukiterangi Lawrence for advocating terrorism. Received El Matari's insurgency letter in HRMCC. Phone seized: 123,822 images and 1,192 videos of extremist content. Sentenced to 6 years.
R v Bayda; R v Namoa (No 8) [2019] NSWSC 24
Supreme Court of New South Wales · 2019Sentencing of Sameh Bayda and Alo-Bridget Namoa for conspiracy to prepare terrorist act. Planned New Year's Eve 2015 attack. Bayda radicalised at 15 through bookstore. Namoa recruited at 14½ by female street preachers. Sentenced to 4 years and 3 years 9 months respectively.
DPP v Saadieh [2021] NSWCCA 232
NSW Court of Criminal Appeal · 2021Joseph Saadieh terrorism sentencing. Possessed 26 viable bomb-making instruction files. Received correspondence from El Matari. Released: 34-person contact ban.
Terrorism Prosecutions — Melbourne Network
R v Halis & Ors [2021] VCC 1277
County Court of Victoria · 2021Sentencing of Hanifi Halis, Samed Eriklioglu, and Ertunc Eriklioglu for conspiracy to prepare terrorist act. Radicalised through street dawah at MyCentre youth organisation. Court documented knowledge of Cerantonio's Philippines boat plot. 10 years each.
R v Cerantonio & Ors [2019] VCC 698
County Court of Victoria · 2019Sentencing of Musa Cerantonio and co-offenders for plotting to sail 3,500km to the Philippines to engage in foreign incursion. Cerantonio lived in Mindanao 2013-2014. Senior ISIS propagandist. 7 years.
Control Orders & Supervision
Booth v Dacre [2021] FCA 796
Federal Court of Australia · 2021Control order confirmation for Paul Dacre, participant in Cerantonio's Philippines boat plot. Post-release: "remained committed to some extremist views." Ceased ISIS support only because caliphate failed. Prohibited from contacting Cerantonio and others.
Booth v Dakkak [2020] FCA 1882
Federal Court of Australia · 2020Control order for Radwan Dakkak. Prohibited contact list of 11 individuals maps the Sydney ISIS network including El Matari, Haddad, Uweinat, and Sheikh Hassan Hussein.
McDonald v Dakkak (No 2) [2022] FCA 1578
Federal Court of Australia · 2022Dakkak control order breach proceedings. Continued correspondence with El Matari from prison. Accessed extremist material in breach of conditions.
Attorney-General v Amin [2023] NSWSC 1280
Supreme Court of New South Wales · 2023Extended supervision order for Nowroz Amin. Prohibited contact list includes same core network names: El Matari, Dakkak, Haddad.
Civil Proceedings
Cassuto v Kostakidis VID404/2025
Federal Court of Australia · 2025Section 18C proceedings against Mary Kostakidis for reposting a video of a Nasrallah speech. Filed by the CEO of the Zionist Federation, represented by Arnold Bloch Leibler. The legal theory—that criticism of Israel constitutes racial vilification—was rejected in Wertheim v Haddad. Pleadings closed December 2025.
Wertheim v Haddad [2025] FCA 720
Federal Court of Australia · 2025Racial discrimination proceedings against Wissam Haddad and AMDC. Court found 25 antisemitic imputations in November 2023 lectures. Both parties' Islamic theology experts agreed neither Qur'an nor Hadith teach Jews have inherent negative qualities. Injunction issued. Judgment delivered 5.5 months before the Bondi attack.
Protest & Civil Liberties
Commissioner of Police (NSW) v Joshua Lees [2025] NSWSC 858
Supreme Court of New South Wales · 2025Court rejected police attempt to ban "March for Humanity" across Sydney Harbour Bridge. Found Palestine Action Group had "high level of commitment to and experience in prosocial protest."
Lees v NSW [2025]
Supreme Court of New South Wales · 2025Constitutional challenge struck down NSW anti-protest laws as impermissibly burdening implied freedom of political communication.