( CNN ) -- Muslim community leaders in Australia say sectarian tensions are soaring , as radicalized Sunni youth , inspired by ISIS , seek to import the religious conflicts wracking the Middle East . `` The tensions are very high and will continue to be high , '' said Jamal Daoud , a Shia community leader in Sydney , where a 47-year old Shia leader was shot in the shoulder early Monday morning , as worshipers observed the Shia ritual of Ashura . He said Rasoul Al Mousawi , a leader in the Shia community focused around the Islamic center in Greenacre , south-west Sydney , had been released from hospital on Tuesday and was doing well . The attack was only one incident in a string of attacks and threats against Shia Muslims by Sunni extremists who sympathized with ISIS , he claimed , and had followed an incident where a group of men had driven past the Islamic center , yelling comments such as `` IS lives forever '' and `` Shia dogs '' in Arabic . A security guard had also been attacked by a group of men who appeared to be followers of the austere Wahhabi tradition of Sunni Islam on Friday , he said . `` There 's high tension between Sunni and Shia , but these extremists , they threaten and attack Sunnis too , '' he said . `` Anyone who speaks against the fighting in Syria and advocating the government to take action against people in Iraq and Syria -- they are threatened and attacked . '' Jamal Rifi , a Sydney-based GP and Sunni community leader , agreed , saying sectarian tensions were at an unprecedented level as a result of the brutal Syrian conflict , and the appeal of ISIS to radicalized Sunni youth in Australia . `` This is the highest level I 've ever seen , and it 's been like this since Khaled Sharrouf got his son to hold up that severed head , '' he said , referring to the notorious Australian ISIS jihadist who tweeted a picture of his seven-year-old son posing with the body parts of a dead fighter in August . 'Death cult influence ' On Tuesday , Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott told reporters that `` it seems there is an ISIL death cult influence on this shooting in Sydney , '' using an alternative name for the terror group . `` The important thing is for all of us to absolutely reject this death cult , '' he said . Some Australian media reports suggested a leadership dispute at the Islamic center could have been the reason behind the attack , but Daoud rejected the notion , saying the dispute was being litigated in the courts and it was highly unlikely that it would take a violent turn . A New South Wales police spokesman said there was nothing to add beyond the police 's initial statement calling for public information on the shooting . Abbott 's government has been a strident supporter of U.S. efforts to combat the Sunni extremist group , which controls large swathes of Syria and Iraq . It has deployed jets and military troops in the fight , introduced controversial legislation to imprison Australians found to be fighting abroad or supporting terrorist actions , and conducted large-scale anti-terror raids , claiming to have disrupted a plot to kidnap and behead a random member of the public . Authorities believe around 60 Australians are fighting in the conflict in Syria and Iraq , with around 100 more working in support roles within Australia . But Daoud said he was yet to see the fruits of Abbott 's tough talk about reining in Australia 's radicalized Muslim youth . `` We thought a lot of the radical Islamic centers would be closed , well-known extremists would be rounded up and put behind bars , '' he said . `` It 's all talk . '' Doubly under fire . Sectarian tensions were a new phenomenon for Australia 's Muslim community , said Rifi . During previous periods when Australian Muslims had felt under attack -- such as in the wake of the September 11 attacks , the Bali bombings or the Cronulla riots -- they had bonded together under a common identity . But now many in the community felt doubly under fire -- from sectarian agitators and from `` rednecks '' in the wider public , said Daoud . Rifi said that from the early days of the Syrian conflict , Sunni extremists had inflamed community tensions by attempting to `` name and shame '' businesses on social media that were run by members of Alawite sect , to which Syrian President Bashar al-Assad belongs . `` They will use any excuse to create division , '' he said . Rifi said he remained optimistic . `` The forces that pull us apart are increasing in strength , but they are nowhere as strong as the forces that pull us together , '' he said . But Daoud did not believe things would improve soon . `` It is a very tough time , and we expect it to become more tough , '' he said .
Australian Muslim leaders say Sunni-Shia tensions are at a high . They say ISIS sympathizers are behind threats and attacks on Shia and Alawites . A 47-year old Shia community leader was shot in the shoulder early Monday morning . Worshipers said a group had earlier driven by yelling `` IS lives forever '' and `` Shia dogs ''