A Sydney man has been charged with foreign incursion offences after allegedly travelling to a Middle Eastern war zone to take up arms.
The 25-year-old, understood to be the first Australian-based person to be charged with the foreign fighter offence, was arrested on Tuesday morning in Mount Lewis in Sydney's southwest.
The man allegedly travelled to the Syrian conflict zone in March, 2015, and returned in October that year.
It is understood he was fighting for a terror organisation.
Police say the man had been subject to ongoing investigations since he returned from Syria.
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Members of the NSW Joint Counter Terrorism Team, which includes the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, state and federal police, were involved in the operation.
The man has been charged with incursion into foreign countries with the intention of engaging in hostile activities, which carries the maximum penalty of life imprisonment, according to police.
He has also been charged with entering and remaining in a "declared area," an offence which carries a maximum of 10 years in prison.
AFP acting Assistant Commissioner Jennifer Hurst said Tuesday's arrest was a culmination of a "long, painstaking process".
Police say Tuesday's operation was part of an ongoing investigation into money laundering which had already led to three arrests earlier in the year.
A Bass Hill man, who was arrested as part of the investigation and charged with dealing in the proceeds of crime in October, was on Tuesday charged with a range of other offences.
The 26-year-old was charged with a variety of drug offences, including possession of a tablet press as well as possession of tampered identifications and stolen property.
Both men are due to appear before Bankstown Local Court on Wednesday.
