Australian counter-terrorism police (file)
Australian counter-terrorism police (file)Reuters

An Australian man who had been put under surveillance over suspected terror links showed up at a Melbourne police station on Tuesday evening. But upon arrival he threatened to assassinate Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, before stabbing two officers and being shot to death.

The 18-year-old had been identified as a "person of interest" amid Australia's recent high terror alert, and evidently had been called in for investigation at the station in the Melbourne suburb of Endeavour Hills, reports BBC.

According to local news reports, the man was a "known extremist" who recently had his passport cancelled. He showed up at the station waving a flag of the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group, and proceeded to threaten Abbott.

The man was approached by an Australian Federal Police officer and a Victoria state police officer, both of whom were part of a counter-terror team.

At that point he stabbed the two officers before being shot, sending both to the hospital - one was reportedly in critical but stable condition.

ISIS terrorism has recently been on the rise in Australia, with police arresting 15 terror suspects of an ISIS cell last Thursday that was planning to behead a random member of the public in a campaign of terror.

The crackdown last Thursday involved more than 800 counter-terrorism police and Australian Security and Intelligence Organization (ASIO) officers, who swooped on homes in the early hours of the morning. In Sydney alone, 25 arrest warrants were executed.

Around 60 Australians are thought to be fighting for jihadist groups in Syria or Iraq, several in leadership positions. The Australian-based Financial Review further revealed that up to 100 Australians are believed to be supporting terrorism through financing or recruiting jihadists for ISIS.

Australia has also taken the fight to the Middle East, joining US airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq.