Terrorgram, an online network for neo-Nazis that advocates acts of violence, has been hit with counter-terrorism sanctions by the federal government in response to escalating anti-Semitic attacks in Australia.
The sanctions make it a criminal offence to use or deal with Terrorgram's assets, under the threat of up to 10 years in jail and hefty fines.
Penny Wong says sanctions will make it more difficult for extremist groups to operate. (Dominic Giannini/AAP PHOTOS)
"We have to use all the tools of government to prevent the rise of extremism, to confront anti-Semitism and to confront hate in all its forms, and we are doing that," Foreign Minister Penny Wong told reporters in Canberra on Monday.
While there were Australians on the platform, it was difficult to determine the location of all users, she said.
It is the first time Australia has imposed counter-terrorism financing sanctions on an online entity.
It follows a spate of anti-Semitic attacks including the targeting of synagogues and the discovery of a caravan packed with explosives in Sydney's northwest with a note containing addresses of Jewish institutions.
The explosives had the capacity to cause a 40 metre-radius blast, but no detonator was found.
Anti-Semitic attacks continue, despite attempts to prevent the rise of extremism. (Bianca De Marchi/AAP PHOTOS)
Michael Zekulin, who researches terrorism and counter-terrorism at the Australian National University, said the situation wasn't static and groups were constantly evolving.
"Anytime you look to nullify or sort of constrain the use of one system, they simply find ways to bypass that, that's the challenge," Dr Zekulin said.
"You're continuously chasing these groups as they move around from place to place and they learn and they sort of understand what's coming and they try to react to that."
Measures to crackdown on networks were frequently under review by governments, he said.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said someone would die if the people behind the attacks weren't stopped.
"People are living with fear at the moment and they need to know that the boundaries and that the red lines are going to be implemented and enforced," he told 3AW radio.
Eggs were hurled at five young women near Sydney's Bondi beach at the weekend and cars and buildings were spray-painted with anti-Semitic slogans.
Strikeforce Pearl commander Detective Superintendent Darren Newman said investigators were treating the matter as an anti-Semitic incident, noting the young women's clothing possibly made them targets.
Darren Newman heads a taskforce set up to respond to the spate of anti-Semitic attacks. (Farid Farid/AAP PHOTOS)
In a separate incident, NSW Police said they had charged a 21-year-old male with intimidation offences after a woman reported anti-Semitic abuse by a man in the yard of a private premises in Bondi. He was refused bail to appear in Newtown Local Court.
Senator Wong also re-listed sanctions for the National Socialist Order, the Russian Imperial Movement, Sonnenkrieg Division and The Base for promoting nationalist and racist violent extremist ideologies.
The secretary-general and leading spokesperson for the designated terrorist group Hezbollah have also been sanctioned.
