MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Three Sunni Muslim men have been sentenced to prison terms of 16 and 22 years on convictions including engaging in a terror act by burning down a Shiite mosque in the Australian city of Melbourne three years ago.
A Victoria state Supreme Court jury convicted Abdullah Chaarani, Ahmed Mohamed, and Hatim Moukhaiber in May over the firebombing of the Imam Ali Islamic Center in December 2016. No one was injured.
Justice Andrew Tinney said on Wednesday their goal had been to “strike a blow against, and terrorize, Shiite Muslims.”
Chaarani and Mohamed were also found guilty of attempting to commit a terror act over a failed attempt to burn the mosque down two weeks earlier. They were each sentenced to 22 years and Moukhaiber to 16 years.
