Khazal who was a former baggage handler for Qantas Airways at Sydney Airport, and a prominent figure in the Islamic Youth Movement.
Born in Lebanon, the father of two was listed in a Central Intelligence Agency report as a member of Al-Qaeda and it was claimed that he had received training from the Taliban in 1998.
[1][2] On 25 September 2009 the Supreme Court of New South Wales sentenced Bilal Khazal to 14 years in prison, with a non-parole period of 9 years, for producing a book, titled 'Provisions on the Rules of Jihad', whilst knowing it was connected with assisting a terrorist attack that would happen in Australia.
[3][4] In 2011 the conviction was overturned[5] and Khazal was granted bail by the Supreme Court of New South Wales in Sydney on 7 June 2011, after spending nearly three years in jail.
[9] Khazal was released on 30 August 2020 under a strict control order that includes wearing a tracking device and a curfew.