Terror accused admits starting fires, allegiance to IS

The footage even captured the then-19-year-old saying things that a "real terrorist" would say, his barrister Pat Doyle SC told the opening day of Sherani's Victorian Supreme Court terrorism trial on Tuesday.

Aran Sherani declared in footage, played to 14 jurors, that Islamic State was "numerous" in Australia and that members would do much damage.

"You will all taste the fire, you will all be tasted by the fire of Allah," he said before tossing matches in the bush.

"You are nothing. You are finished."

But it's his intention in doing those things that jurors must consider in reaching verdicts on two charges of attempting to commit a terrorist act, and one of doing acts in preparation for or planning of a terrorist act, Mr Doyle said.

Aran Sherani is ethnically Kurdish and identifies strongly with the people and their historical oppression as a stateless group with enemies on all sides, the jury heard.

"It's the defence case that what Aran Sherani wanted to do was send the videos to people that he believed were members of the Islamic State group and ... his purpose in doing that was that they would help him go overseas to fight," he told jurors.

"To fight, in particular, with the people of Kurdistan."

Mr Doyle said it was never Aran Sherani's intention to kill or harm Australian civilians, to damage property or cause serious risk to public health as was alleged.

Prosecutor Justin Hannebery KC said the fires were put out relatively quickly and the public was never at risk, but that Aran Sherani had acted with the intention of causing serious harm to propel or damage to property, with the intention of advancing Islam through violence.

His older Ari Sherani, who was then 20, is accused of joining Aran Sherani in attempting to commit the terrorist act on February 18.

The then-20-year-old admits being present when that fire was lit and, described by his barrister Colin Mandy SC as a child of the social media generation, also admits filming it.

But Mr Mandy said Ari Sherani, who has pleaded not guilty, is not a terrorist and never has been one.

Jurors were also played a third video, in which Aran Sherani was armed with a knife while on the run from police on March 17, 2021.

"I slipped away and by the will of Allah I was able to even go to a shop nearby my home and get this," he said, holding up the knife.

Mr Hannebery said it was alleged Aran Sherani purchased the knife and recorded the videos with the intention of expressing a desire to engage in violent jihad and punish non-believers in revenge for mistreatment of Muslims.

Mr Doyle said most of the evidence against his client was not in dispute, and in fact most of it had been generated by Aran Sherani filming himself.

He said prosecutors had asked them to take Aran Sherani at his word, but he urged them to question who his client's intended audience was, who any intended victims of an attack might have been, and his emotional state at the time he made the videos.

The trial before Justice Mandy Fox is continuing.