Sydney church stabbing LIVE: Shock details emerge about criminal record of teenager accused of Sydney terror stabbing – as police are given extraordinary new powers after wild night of rioting

The 16-year-old accused of stabbing a western Sydney church leader during a service that was streamed online had recently been given a good beahviour bond for knife crime.

The teenager was charged with a number of offences after an incident at a Sydney train station in November last year, reported the ABC.

The charges included possessing a flick knife, being armed with a weapon with intent to committ an indictable offence, stalking and/or intimidation and recklessly destroy or damage property.

He had been on bail before a court appearance in January where the charges were ‘proven’ but dismissed with the good behaviour bond.

The outlet reported there were no supervision orders in place when he allegedly carried out the attack on Monday night.

Federal leader of the coalition Peter Dutton has spoken following two horrific stabbing incidents in Sydney.

Six people were sadly killed during a rampage by a knifeman at Bondi Junction shopping centre on the weekend.

This was followed by the stabbing of a bishop at a church in Sydney’s west, allegedly at the hands of a 16-year-old male in what has been labelled a ‘terrorist attack’.

Mr Dutton said on Tuesday afternoon that he had written to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese offering his full support to any measures the government pursues in the aftermath of the attacks.

‘This was a tragedy that we saw in Bondi and in Western Sydney.

‘I have asked for a briefing from the director-general of ASIO and the AFP Commissioner on these matters and the current threat level as it currently operates in Australia.

‘We should also send our thoughts and prayers again to those who are still in hospital. Some in the intensive care unit off the back of the horrible circumstances at Bondi on the weekend.

‘We wish all of those people a speedy recovery as well.

‘The trauma of those families is something that we cannot contemplate and I want to make sure that every assistance is provided to them, as I know it is.’

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel’s life was saved when his alleged attacker’s flick-knife failed to open properly during the frenzied onslaught.

Close friend Danny Abdallah spoke to the bishop as he recovered in hospital overnight and revealed fresh new details of the incident on Tuesday morning.

Mr Abdallah – who lost three of his children and his niece to a drunk and drugged driver – called the bishop’s miracle escape an ‘act of God’.

Temporary powers have been granted to police to allow them to search people, vehicles and property after an alleged terror attack in Sydney’s west.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuael is in hospital after he was alleged stabbed by a 16-year-old who is in police custody.

The incident was declared a terror attack by NSW Police Comissioner Karen Webb and confirmed by the Police Minister, which triggers the powers under NSW legislation.

Police in the state will be able to search people, vehicles and properties without a warrant, as well as establish roadblocks, cordon off areas and demand confirmation of people’s identities.

The powers, granted to prevent any further attacks, will last for up to two weeks.

An alleged teenage terrorist who was detained by churchgoers and police after a bishop was attacked at a western Sydney church is understood to have severed his own finger.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was stabbed during a sermon at Christ the Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley on Monday night about 7pm.

It had been speculated a member of the angry mob had been responsible but it is now understood he accidentally severed the finger himself during the alleged attack.

Pictures which showed all four fingers on the left hand severed are understood to be fake.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel has undergone surgery on Tuesday morning after he was allegedly stabbed as he gave a sermon at Christ the Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley.

Police have labelled the attack – which happened as the church service was broadcast online about 7pm Monday – as a terror incident.

The alleged perpetrator made comments as they approached the bishop and when detained by police that appear to indicate a religious motivation that will be a focus of the investigation, though police said he was not on any watchlists.

The alleged stabbing sparked violent riots by a crowd of up to 2,000 people that lasted to midnight leaving dozens more injured.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Tuesday morning he had been briefed by the Australian Federal Police on the incident.

‘As police continue their investigations, Australians are thinking of those who have been injured, the first responders who rushed to help and the police who worked to restore order,’ he said.

‘In testing times, Australians stand together.’

‘I certainly understand the distress and concerns which are there, particularly after the tragic event at Bondi.

‘But it is completely not acceptable to impede and injure police doing their duty or to damage police vehicles in the way that occurred last night.

‘There’s no place for violent extremism. We’re a peace-loving nation.

‘I applaud the leadership of the police and our emergency services once again rushing to the scene to provide that support.

‘And I commend as well Chris Minns, the Premier, who called a meeting of faith leaders last night in order to calm the situation.’

Mr Albanese said the National Security Committee met last night and a joint counter terrorism taskforce has been established which includes the AFP and ASIO.

AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw urged the public to remain alert.

‘I urge people who see or hear something that they feel is not right to contact the National Security hot line immediately on 1800 123 400,’ Commissioner Kershaw said.

While ASIO chief Mike Burgess said the nation’s terrorism threat level was at ‘possible’ and that the ‘most likely’ incident would be someone acting alone.

‘It does appear to be religiously motivated but we continue our lines of investigation, he said.

He said ASIO was looking at individuals with links to the alleged attacker to ensure there were no further threats.

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb has called the alleged Wakeley church stabbing a ‘terror incident’.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was attacked as he gave a sermon at Christ the Good Sepherd Church in Wakeley about 7pm Monday.

Video showed the alleged 16-year-old perpetrator detained by police on the ground inside the church before he spoke in Arabic.

It is understood the words translate to: ‘If he didn’t swear at my Prophet I wouldn’t be here. If he didn’t involve himself in my religion I wouldn’t be here’.

Premier Chris Minns at a press conference with Commissioner Webb on Tuesday also warned vigilantes after ‘extremely violent’ riots were sparked by the stabbing which resulted in 30 people treated by paramedics.

‘There is no such thing in Australia as taking the law into your own hands,’ Premier Minns said.

‘You will be met by the full force of the law if there is any tit for tat violence in Sydney over the coming days.’

Commissioner Webb said 20 police cars were damaged in the riots and one officer’s jaw was reportedly broken.

‘The police officers, of which there were many, acted courageously to protect that community, witnesses, victims and the ambulance officers,’ she said.

‘They went there to do their job last night and they were turned on.’

Commissioner Webb said of the alleged stabbing: ‘I declared that it was a terrorist incident’.

‘Strike Force Petrina has been established to investigate that side of the events last night and a referral has been made and agreed to by the joint counterterrorism investigation team that we will work jointly with NSW police lead, with AFP and other Commonwealth agencies in this investigation.

NSW Ambulance Commissioner Dom Morgan also slammed the rioters who forced ambulance officers to fear for their safety.

‘Paramedics became under threat and … had to retreat into the church.

‘The officers that serve this community and police every single day were holed up in that church for three-and-a-half hours.

‘Six of our paramedics could not leave that facility for fear of their own safety.’

A bishop stabbed during a church service in Sydney prayed for his alleged attacker moments after being stabbed, Daily Mail Australia understands.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was stabbed at the Christ the Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley – an incident broadcast on the church’s livestream.

The alleged attacker, a 16-year-old boy, was seen approaching the bishop before appearing to repeatedly stab him, raining blows down to his head and upper body at the altar as parishioners screamed and ran to the cleric’s aid.

Police said the attacker was known to them.

After the attack, a furious mob of around 2000 people swarmed near the church with riots breaking out and police struggling to maintain order.

A neighbour who lives just around the corner said the chaos began at about 7pm and wrapped up at midnight.

‘They were just running from every direction,’ he said.

‘They were chanting ‘’f*** the police’’ and ‘’you’re a dead man’’ towards the alleged attacker.’

Police Commissioner Karen Webb addressed a rumour about the teen’s finger injuries, and said it is not clear whether they had been cut by the crowd or were accidentally severed in the chaos.

The NSW Joint Counter Terrorism Team will investigate the stabbing of a bishop at a Sydney church on Monday night.

Police confirmed on Tuesday afternoon the JCTT, a specialist police unit responsible for responding to terror threats in the state, are looking into the incident.

The unit is made up of members from the NSW Police, the Australian Federal Police, ASIO and the NSW Crime Commission.

Comments made by the alleged perpetrator as he approached Bishop Mar Mari Emmanual and as he was detained by bystanders and police appear to indicate a religious motivation.

The investigation will be led by the NSW Police under Operation Kilchurn.

Religious leaders in Sydney have met with NSW Premier Chris Minns who thanked them for their ‘committment to peace and unity’.

The group convened on Tuesday afternoon following the stabbing of a bishop at the Christ the Good Shepherd church in Wakeley that sparked violent riots.

Mr Minns said it was a ‘big-hearted gesture from our faith leaders to protect our communities’.

‘We must remain calm and uphold the law,’ he said.

He said the incident should highlight violent extremism has no place in Australia.

‘Nearly all of the people who practise faith in this state would never participate in an act of violence.’

Mr Minns said if the group’s message got through to just one person who could be at risk of radicalisation ‘it will have been worth it’.

Earlier on Tuesday Lakemba Mosque Imam Jamal-Ud-Din El-Kiki said he is hopeful ‘we can recover from this as an Australian community’.

Catholic Archbishop of Sydney Reverend Anthony Fisher said the churchgoers should not be shaken.

‘I urge the faithful to not respond to these events with fear, avoiding places of worship because they are worried about further attacks, nor with anger, engaging in acts of reprisal or revenge.

‘The best response to violence and fear is prayer and peace.’

An Assyrian Orthodox Church bishop stabbed during church service in Sydney spoke controversially about Islam in a video recorded four months ago.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was preaching at Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley in Sydney’s west just after 7pm on Monday when a 16-year-old boy walked up to the altar and allegedly stabbed him multiple times.

On a separate video of the aftermath of the alleged terror attack, the boy said in Arabic ‘If they didn’t insult my prophet, I wouldn’t have come here. If he didn’t involve himself in my religion, I would not have come here.’

Sydney’s Lakemba mosque will increase security after bomb threats were made following the stabbing of a bishop at the nearby Christ the Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley.

At a press conference on Tuesday afternoon Gamel Kheir, secretary of the Lebanese Muslim Association, said the measure was nothing more than a precaution.

‘We had close to 500 people here (at Lakemba mosque on Monday night).

‘Unfounded, but there were threats to firebomb the mosque. We don’t want to perpetrate that, we’re vigilant.’

Lakemba Mosque Imam Jamal-Ud-Din El-Kiki said he was concerned about the incident being called a ‘terrorist attack’.

‘It’s a politically loaded term … I think it’s about a teenager who had a knife who decided to commit a horrific action.’

The 16-year-old held by police who is accused of stabbing a Sydney bishop was reportedly suspended for taking a knife to school.

Police confirmed the teenager is known to them but was not on any terrorist watchlists, despite saying the alleged attack appeared to have a religious motivation.

The alleged weapon is understood to have been a flick knife.

The teenager was reportedly suspended from school in 2020 for carrying a blade onto school grounds.

Bystanders caught up in violent riots in Sydney’s west following an alleged terror attack at a church have described the chaotic scenes.

A 16-year-old is in custody after he allegedly repeatedly stabbed Bishop Mar Mari during a service at Christ the Good Shephard Church in Wakeley.

The bishop remains in hospital and underwent surgery on Teusday morning.

Friend of the church, Dominic Cammareri, who lives just streets away, said

he was caught up in the violence and was pepper sprayed from a distance.

‘People were vomiting from the pepper spray and running into people’s homes to get water,’ he said.

He blamed the power of social media for how things escalated so severely.

‘If it wasn’t for social media the police would have arrived before the people rioting and this wouldn’t have happened,’ he said.

‘They wanted blood. It was a great build-up of mayhem.

‘My only concern was for the bishop’s welfare. He is recovering but I don’t think he’ll be released from hospital any time soon.’

Mr Cammareri said he believed the alleged offender was Lebanese Muslim and the Christ The Good Shepherd Church is Christian.

Another local, Lena Davis, 73, said those who were involved in the riot ‘should be ashamed of themselves’.

‘I could hear the helicopters, I was scared but I felt safe in my home,’ the grandmother-of-two said.

‘A church is the safest place in the world, it should be.

‘The footage was horrifying to see, what those people were doing to police, there is no need for that.

‘There is no need for anybody to treat police in a bad way because who do you call when you’re in trouble?’

The western Sydney suburb of Wakeley was eerily quiet on Tuesday morning following a shocking stabbing and riot outside a church.

Broken glass covered the road outside the Christ the Good Shepherd Church, which also had police tape on the entrance after violent scenes erupted on Monday night.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was preaching at the church in Wakeley in Sydney’s west on Monday just after 7pm when a 15-year-old boy dressed in black walked up to the altar and allegedly stabbed him multiple times.

Father Isaac Royel was also injured, with both he and Bishop Emmanuel taken to hospital in stable condition.

Hundreds of angry locals gathered outside the church on Monday night after the stabbing was live-streamed, with many taking aim at the multitude of police officers who were called to the scene.

A constable was hit with a metal object, chipping his tooth and leaving him with a twisted knee, while another officer broke their jaw after he was hit with a brick and fence paling.

A wooden fence paling was seen on the road outside the church early on Tuesday morning, while shards of glass and bricks were scattered across the pavement.

Residents are staying inside their homes on Tuesday morning as police officers roam around the church.

Cars parked outside the church and along Welcome St escaped any damage, even a white Maserati remained untouched.

Acting Assistant Commissioner Andrew Holland told media at a late-night press conference that police are ‘disappointed’ in the community following the ugly scenes.

In the aftermath of the alleged stabbing of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel and Father Isaac Royel, by a boy, 15, the situation outside the church and on surrounding streets grew tense.

‘A number of police were injured and multiple police vehicles were damaged,’ Mr Holland said.

‘We are a little bit disappointed in the community themselves. A number of houses have been damaged.

‘They’ve broken into a number of houses to gain weapons to throw at the police.

‘They’ve thrown weapons and items at the church itself. It was obviously people who wanted to get access to the young person.’

Police have vowed to ramp up patrols on mosques and places of worship in the area as tensions run high.

Acting Assistant Commissioner Andrew Holland, Commander for South West Metro Region, revealed that the alleged atttacker was just 15 years old and is known to police.

He has been taken to an undisclosed location where he remains under police guard.

The senior cop was also asked about rumours the alleged assailant’s fingers had been chopped off in revenge.

‘Reports are that he has injuries to his hands – I don’t know the extent of those injuries at this point,’ Mr Holland said.

He added: ‘His injuries are quite severe in his hand, he’s fairly upset and fairly distraught.’

The teenager is not a regular attendee at the church.

Mr Holland praised the ‘fantastic job’ of the parishioners but said the ‘large crowd’ outside the church gave officers grave concerns for the teen’s safety.

‘A decision was made to retain the young person in the church for his safety,’ he said.

The wild scenes prompted the deployment of over 100 police officers, 30 vehicles and PolAir helicopters.

Mr Holland said the riot went on for ‘a number of hours’ and it took the police ‘some time’ to establish order.

‘A number of police were injured and multiple police vehicles were damaged,’ he added.

Mr Holland said police would be ‘hunting down’ those involved in the riot.

It is understood that Father Isaac Royel (pictured), who serves in the Assyrian ministry at St Shimun Bar Sabbae and St Mary Cathedral, was among those injured.

In a statement published shortly before 10.30pm, Christ The Good Shepherd Church revealed both Bishop Emmanuel and Father Isaac were in a ‘stable condition’.

‘We ask for your prayers at this time. It is the Bishop’s and Father’s wishes that you also pray for the perpetrator,’ the statement said.

‘We also kindly ask anyone at the Church premises to leave in peace, as our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, teaches us.’

Liverpool Hospital, in Sydney’s west, was placed in lockdown on Monday evening.

It is understood large crowds fromed outside the building following the alleged attack on Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel at Wakeley’s Christ The Good Shepherd Church.

Pictures from the scene showed police tape around the entrances.

A spokesperson for the the hospital said the emergency department was ‘closed to members of the public not requiring care for a period of time tonight as a precautionary measure’.

‘The ED remained open at all times to those requiring care, including those arriving via personal car or via ambulance,’ the spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia.

The alleged attacker was bundled into the back of an armoured police Bearcat vehicle shortly after 10pm.

Around a dozen officers and members of the riot squad watched on as he was whisked away from the tense scene (pictured below).

He has now been taken to an undisclosed location due to fears for his safety.

It comes as pictures have emerged of smashed police car windows and windscreens.

At 10.30pm, NSW Police said they were continuing to ‘work on restoring order’ in the area.

NSW Premier Chris Minns said he had been briefed by the NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb and NSW Health on the ‘disturbing scenes’ in Wakeley in Sydney’s west tonight.

‘My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and first responders who are working to keep us safe,’ Mr Minns said.

‘It’s important that the community remain calm and continue to listen and act to the directions of Police and Emergency Services.

‘We are a strong community in NSW and it’s important that we all stick together, particularly in the face of adversity.’

Mr Minns had to fly home just a day into a recent family holiday to Japan after the Westfield Bondi Jucntion stabbing massacre on Saturday.

Footage has emerged of the alleged attacker being pinned down on his front by at least three people, including a police officer, as he smiled and appeared to mock his captors.

One man, with blood visible on his jeans, sat with his legs straddling the alleged attacker’s head.

‘People are praying and you come and (allegedly) do this?’, the man said as he lightly slapped him on his cheek.

The police officer interjected: ‘Stop, just let go, please. You’re going to make it worse.’

But then the man holding the camera pulled the other man’s leg away to reveal the alleged attacker’s face.

He smiled and appeared to laugh as the man holding the camera said: ‘You’re a f***ing idiot, you’re going to cop it.’

The alleged attacker then appeared to say: ‘You think they’ll hurt my brother?’ as the police officers tried to usher the men away.

The priest stabbed during a sermon at a church in western Sydney is a known anti-vaxxer who railed against lockdowns during the Covid pandemic.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was delivering mass at Wakeley’s Christ The Good Shepherd Church on Monday night when he was attacked at about 7pm.

Horrifying footage of the incident, which was being broadcast live on the church’s YouTube page, shows Bishop Emmanuel look up in astonishment as the attacker dressed in black suddenly rains down blows on his face and head.

Bishop Emmanuel rose to prominence during the Covid pandemic by criticising harsh lockdown measures which he branded ‘mass slavery’.

He claimed vaccines would not work against the virus because living ‘normally’ would boost immunity.

‘Are we humans? Because we are being treated like animals,’ Bishop Emmanuel said in a sermon in 2021.

‘They are encouraging people to go and take vaccine and stay at home. They have had enough.’

He has since developed a large TikTok following and has 290,000 followers on the church’s Facebook.

• Suspect remains in custody
• Injured individuals treated at the scene
• Large police response underway
• Officers still at the scene

NSW Police warn members of the public to avoid the area around the church, while there are also reports that Liverpool Hospital is in lockdown.

Fairfield Mayor Frank Carbone has called for calm in the community, and provided an update on the injured bishop: ‘He should be okay’

Danny Abdallah, the father of the Oatlands crash tragedy, has spoken out after a popular bishop, who he has known for years, was stabbed during a sermon.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was preaching at Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley in Sydney’s west on Monday just after 7pm when a man dressed in black walked up to the altar and stabbed him multiple times.

There are also reports of multiple others taken to hospital as a tense situation unfolds on nearby streets.

Mr Abdallah, who is a devoted Christian, said he cannot comprehend why anyone would want to hurt him.

‘He’s a respected man in the community. He’s loved by all of the Assyrian community especially,’ he said.

‘He’s a wonderful priest. He lives to serve others and help people.‘What happened tonight was just devastating.

‘I don’t know why anyone would do that. It doesn’t make sense he’s a very peaceful man.’

Mr Abdallah and his wife Leila’s children Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, Sienna, eight, and their niece Veronique Sakr, 11, were walking on a footpath to buy ice-cream in Oatlands, in Sydney’s west, when they were hit by a car and killed on February 1, 2020.

The driver, Samuel Davidson, was under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time.

He is serving a 20-year jail sentence.

Despite the horrific tragedy and the anger he felt, he publicly forgave Davidson and credited his faith for giving him the courage to do so.

The suspect and the injured bishop taken to two different hospitals in Sydney’s west, both with non-life threatening injuries

Video from the scene shows an angry mob smashing the windows of police cars as they try to get to the stabbing suspect.

Police use pepper spray in response.

Angry worshippers are facing off with police outside the church. One shouts ‘eye for eye’

Video from the scene shows a huge mob rioting outside the church

Horrifying footage of the incident, which was being broadcast live on the church’s YouTube page, shows Bishop Emmanuel look up in astonishment as the attacker suddenly rains down blows on his face and head.