Australia Bans National Socialist Network

Australia has officially banned the neo-Nazi group National Socialist Movement, also known as White Australia, under its new law criminalizing hate groups. This action, announced by Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, makes it illegal to support, fund, or direct the group, with penalties up to 15 years in prison. The law was enacted in response to an antisemitic attack at Sydney's Bondi Beach in December, which killed 15 people. The National Socialist Movement is the second organization to be banned under this legislation, following the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir in March. The Australia — Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) determines if a group meets the criteria for a hate group designation, which a government minister must then approve. Thomas Sewell, the founder of the National Socialist Movement, is currently awaiting trial for allegedly leading an attack on an Indigenous protest camp and was previously linked to the Christchurch mosque gunman, Christchurch mosque shootings. Despite claims by the National Socialist Movement that it would disband, Tony Burke dismissed these suggestions, stating the group continued its activities.