MELBOURNE, Australia: Five teenagers accused of following a violent extremist ideology have been charged with a range of offenses in an investigation that began with the stabbing of a bishop in a Sydney church, police said on Thursday.

The five were among seven boys arrested across southwestern Sydney on Wednesday in a major operation by the Joint Counter-Terrorism Team. The team includes federal and state police, as well as the Australian Security Intelligence Organization and the New South Wales Crime Commission, which specializes in extremists and organized crime.