A photograph of the son of a convicted terrorist holding the severed head of a Syrian soldier published in an Australian newspaper, left readers and Prime Minister Tony Abbott appalled.
According to the Associated Press, the boy’s father, Khaled Sharrouf, was raised in Sydney. Sharrouf left the country last year, using his brother’s passport to fight in Syria and Iraq.
Sharrouf was proud and even posted “that’s my boy” on Twitter. The boy’s exact age is unknown, but he is no older than 10.
“We see more and more evidence of just how barbaric this particular entity is,” Abbot said.
Sharrouf was one of nine Muslim men accused in 2007 of plotting terrorist attacks in Sydney and Melbourne, which are Australia’s largest cities. He and the men planned on gathering bombs for the attack. Sharrouf pleaded guilty in 2009 to terrorism offense and served four years in prison.
Sharrouf and his companion, Mohamed Elomar, both have warrants out for their arrest since last month. If they return to Australia they will be arrested.
According to Aljazeera, up to 150 Australians are overseas fighting with rebels. Most of them are in Iraq and Syria.
Samier Dandan, the Lebanese Muslim Association president in Australia, said the view was not a reflection of Islam.
“I stand very far from that concept - this is an act of a lunatic.”