MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Police in Australia are investigating suspicious packages sent to a wide range of embassies and consulates on Wednesday, which officials said included the U.S. and British missions in Melbourne, but there were no reports of harm to staff.

Domestic media reported more than a dozen foreign offices received the packages and that some staff said they contained asbestos, a material used in building that can cause cancers and other health problems.

There were no details of any possible motive and some of the targeted sites that Reuters reporters visited were open later on Wednesday afternoon.

“The packages are being examined by attending emergency services,” the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said in a short statement.

Related Coverage Police confirm suspicious packages sent to diplomatic missions in Australia

It said the packages were sent to consulates in Melbourne and embassies in Canberra but did not provide a total number of affected sites or identify any of them.

“The circumstances surrounding the incidents are being investigated,” the AFP statement said.

Officials at the U.S. and British consulates in Melbourne separately confirmed suspicious packages had been received.

“We handled the package according to our standard procedures and in close coordination with local authorities ... who are investigating the incident,” a spokesman for the U.S. Consulate said.

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A New Zealand official told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation the consulate received an envelope with small plastic bags that appeared to contain concrete and asbestos, with “asbestos” written on one of the bags.

The Age newspaper reported that one firefighter was seen outside the South Korean consulate carrying a large plastic bag with the word “asbestos” written on it.

Other consulates in Melbourne reported by media to have received suspicious packages included those representing Greece, Italy, Spain, Thailand, India, Japan, Pakistan, Egypt, Denmark and Switzerland. Reuters could not confirm the reports.</s>Melbourne, Australia (CNN) — An investigation is underway in Australia after multiple suspicious packages were delivered to Embassies and Consulates in Melbourne and Canberra overnight.

Investigators say at least 13 packages have been found and more than a dozen Consulates were evacuated.

 Australian Federal police are now involved and investigating the incidents. Authorities believe the packages contained asbestos.</s>The Indian consulate in Melbourne, Australia was briefly evacuated after a suspicious package was found on its premises. Similar packages were found at several diplomatic missions in the city, prompting the Australian authority to launch a major emergency operation.

According to reports, several suspicious packages were sent to at least 10 international consulates across Melbourne. “The packages are being examined by attending emergency services. The circumstances surrounding the incidents are being investigated,” Australian Federal Police tweeted.

Reports say, these suspicious packages were sent to consulates of India, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Japan, Pakistan, South Korea, Germany, Greece, Spain, Seychelles, Switzerland, Croatia and Egypt.

Australian journalists tweeted the images and videos showing Australian police and emergency vehicles at the Indian consulate. In one of the tweeted video, the police can be seen entering the Korean embassy, where too the suspicious package was found.</s>Suspicious packages have sparked a major emergency response and evacuation of some foreign consulates across Melbourne, with embassies in Canberra also hit.

Diplomatic offices in Melbourne for countries including Germany, Italy, India, Spain and Korea were among those attended by police, fire crews and ambulance officers on Wednesday afternoon.

"Police and emergency services have responded to suspicious packages delivered to embassies in Melbourne," an Australian Federal Police statement said.

"The packages are being examined by attending emergency services.

"The circumstances surrounding these incidents are being investigated."

It is not yet known which embassies in Canberra have been affected.

Two fire trucks, a hazardous materials vehicle and police cars attended the Consulate-General of India on St Kilda Road where staff were evacuated, telling reporters they had been told not to comment to reporters.

They were allowed to re-enter the building, which was deemed "safe" by Vic Emergency by 3pm.

The Vic Emergency website lists more than 10 "hazardous material" events occurring across Melbourne, which began unfolding from about 1pm.

Addresses for the events included Market Street, Bourke Street, Middleton Lane, William Street, and St Kilda Road in Melbourne, Elgin Street at Carlton, and Yertchuk Avenue at Ashwood. Each location matches the address of a consulate.

Emergency workers wearing chemical suits were seen entering some of the buildings.

Some of the events have subsequently been listed as "safe" and "under control".

The Indian and US consulates on St Kilda Road as well as the British, Swiss and German diplomatic mission are believed to have been targeted.

There are also reports the Korean, Greek, Italian, Pakistani and Egyptian consulates have also in lockdown. Unverified reports have said packages bearing the word "asbestos" and "wear a mask" were received.

Two fire trucks, a hazardous materials vehicle and police cars attended the Consulate-General of India early on Wednesday afternoon, reported AAP.

Vic Emergency has said 17 hazardous material incidents are in progress on St Kilda Rd, Collins St, Queens St, Albert Rd and William St in or close to the CBD and separately in Ashwood - all of which correspond to a consulate.

At least eight vehicles are in attendance.

Vic Emergency has said the incidents are "under control".

Images have shown fire engines outside the consulates.

The Metropolitan Fire Brigade is assisting Australian Federal Police, who is the lead agency in the investigation, an MFB spokeswoman said.

The incidents come just two days after a suspicious white substance inside a parcel was found at the Argentine consulate in Sydney.

Emergency crews in hazmat suits were seen entering the 44 Market Street tower in the CBD on Monday.

A spokeswoman for Fire and Rescue NSW told news.com.au the powder was tested by crews at the scene and it is now in the hands of police.

More to come.</s>Authorities said Wednesday that they were investigating suspicious packages that had been sent to several consulates and embassies in Melbourne and Canberra, the capital.

Australian Federal Police gave few details, saying only that emergency units were responding to suspicious packages delivered to diplomatic addresses in the two cities.

Victoria State Emergency Services began reporting hazardous-materials alerts along major streets that are home to numerous foreign consulates in Melbourne, the country's second-largest city, beginning early Wednesday afternoon (Tuesday night ET).

U.S. diplomatic officials in Australia told ABC, Australia's national public broadcaster, that the U.S. Consulate in Melbourne was among the institutions that had received the packages but that the U.S. Embassy in Canberra wasn't.

"We handled the package according to our standard procedures and in close coordination with local authorities ... who are investigating the incident," a spokesman for the Melbourne consulate told the news service.

No further information was immediately available about Wednesday's reports, which came two days after a suspicious white powder was discovered in a package at the Argentine Consulate in Sydney, Australia's largest city.

Haz-mat crews tested the powder and found no poisons or toxins.</s>SYDNEY (AP) — Australian police arrested a man after 38 suspicious packages containing a possibly hazardous substance were sent to foreign consulates in the Australian cities of Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney.

The 48-year-old was arrested at his home in Shepparton, Victoria state, on Wednesday night, and charged with sending dangerous articles to be carried by a postal service, police said. He was due to appear in Melbourne Magistrates Court later on Thursday.

Around 10 diplomatic missions, mostly in Melbourne, on Wednesday reported the delivery of suspicious packages, some of them labelled "asbestos." The missions included those from the United States, Britain, India, South Korea, Pakistan, Israel, Switzerland and Greece.

This followed the discovery and removal on Monday of a suspicious package at the Argentinian Consulate in Sydney.

Australian Federal Police and Victoria Police said in a joint statement they will allege the substance in the packages was sourced from the man's Shepparton home.

"Police have so far recovered 29 of these packages, with forensic testing to be undertaken on them to determine the exact composition of the material in them," the statement said.

"Police have identified all intended recipients and have put processes in place to recover the outstanding packages. There is no ongoing threat to the general public," it added.</s>SYDNEY (AP) — Several foreign consulates were evacuated in the Australian cities of Melbourne and Canberra on Wednesday after they received suspicious packages.

Police, fire crews and ambulances were seen at a number of diplomatic offices in Melbourne, including those of India, Germany, Italy, Spain and South Korea. The government Vic Emergency website noted at least 10 "hazardous material" incidents in the city.

"The circumstances surrounding these incidents are being investigated," the Australian Federal Police said in a statement.

The Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported suspicious packages were also found at the Melbourne consulates of the United States, Switzerland, Pakistan and New Zealand, and possibly those of Greece, France, and Hong Kong.

It was not immediately known which countries' diplomatic missions in the national capital, Canberra, were affected.

The ABC reported one New Zealand consulate worker had said the packages in question were envelopes labelled "asbestos." Inside were plastic sandwich bags containing a fibrous material.

Two firetrucks, a hazardous materials vehicle and police cars were seen at India's consulate in Melbourne, where staff members had been evacuated, some wearing protective masks.

Staff were later allowed to re-enter the building, which was deemed safe by Vic Emergency, the collective body of emergency agencies in Victoria state, of which Melbourne is the capital.

The incidents come after Sydney's Argentinian consulate was partially evacuated on Monday after reports of a suspicious substance. The powder, contained in clear plastic bags within an envelope, was subsequently deemed not dangerous.</s>Australian police have arrested a 48-year-old man for allegedly sending dozens of suspicious packages to embassies and consulates around the country, officials said Thursday.

Federal police said the man was arrested at his home in rural Victoria state late Wednesday, hours after several consulates in Melbourne received the suspicious packages.

They alleged that the man had sent 38 parcels in all to consulates and embassies in Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney.

Police have so far recovered 29 of the packages and identified "all intended recipients". They said there was no "ongoing threat to the general public" from the remaining nine.

The suspect was due to appear in a Melbourne court later Thursday morning to face charges of sending dangerous materials through the post. The charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, police said.

On Wednesday, emergency services raced to a string of diplomatic facilities in Melbourne which had received packages containing suspected hazardous material.

There was no obvious pattern to countries targeted, with consulates of the United States, China, Italy, India, Japan and New Zealand suffering scares.

There has been no evidence yet that the packages were dangerous, but police Thursday said forensic testing was continuing to determine their exact contents.

The said the material contained in the parcels was believed to have been "sourced" from the suspect's home.

The first suspect packages were found at three consulates and embassies in Sydney and Canberra earlier in the week, leading the Department of Foreign Affairs to send notes to all diplomatic missions Tuesday "alerting them to the possibility of suspicious packages being delivered by mail".</s>SYDNEY, Australia – Australian police have arrested a man after 38 suspicious packages containing a possibly hazardous substance were sent to foreign consulates in the Australian cities of Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney.

Police say a 48-year-old man was arrested at his home in Shepparton, Victoria state, on Wednesday night, and charged with sending dangerous articles to be carried by a postal service.

READ MORE: Suspicious packages sent to as many as 14 diplomatic missions in Australia

The arrest came after around 10 diplomatic missions, mostly in Melbourne, on Wednesday reported the delivery of suspicious packages, some of them labelled “asbestos.”

The missions included those from the United States, Britain, India, South Korea, Pakistan, Israel, Switzerland and Greece.

Australian Federal Police and Victoria Police said in a joint statement that the man would appear in Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday.</s>It will be alleged in court that the man sent 38 parcels to consulates and embassies in Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney. The substance is alleged to have been sourced from his Shepparton home. He is currently in custody and due to appear at the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday morning. The arrest comes after diplomatic missions in Australia were warned to check for suspicious packages the day before more than 10 international consulates and embassies in Melbourne and Canberra received packages containing white powder. Police have so far recovered 29 of these packages, with forensic testing expected to determine the exact composition of the material inside. "Police have identified all intended recipients and have put processes in place to recover the outstanding packages," Australian Federal Police said in a statement.

"There is no ongoing threat to the general public." The AFP also said assistance from Australia Post had been "crucial to the outcome of the investigation". The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed on Thursday morning that it had warned all consulates to be on high alert for suspicious packages after three similar recent incidents in consulates in Sydney and Canberra. Some of the packages were reportedly marked with the word "asbestos". A firefighter is seen carrying a hazardous material bag into the South Korean consulate in Melbourne on Wednesday. On Monday, the discovery of a suspicious substance inside parcels at the Argentinian consulate prompted a large emergency response in Sydney's CBD.

Emergency services workers swarmed the US, Greek, French, Italian, Indian, New Zealand, Pakistani, Spanish, South Korean and Swiss consulates in Melbourne on Wednesday, with hazardous material alerts issued for more than a dozen locations. The South Korean, Indian and New Zealand consulates in Melbourne were all evacuated after receiving packages. The US consulate was placed in lockdown at 1.30pm on Wednesday after staff scanned a suspicious package and discovered it contained white powder. Suspicious packages were also delivered to the British, Spanish, Greek, Taiwanese and Turkish consulates. Another firefighter at the South Korean consulate.

DFAT said in a statement that after learning of the suspicious packages sent to three offices in Sydney and Canberra, it had notified all diplomatic missions on Tuesday and warned officials to be cautious with their mail. "The note advised missions to handle mail in accordance with their own government’s protocols and instructions," a DFAT spokesman said. "It also included Australian Federal Police (AFP) guidance on handling suspicious mail and advised missions to contact the AFP Protection Liaison Team to report any concerns or incidents. Similar advice was subsequently provided to consulates around Australia." There were unconfirmed reports that packages could have been sent to up to 22 locations, including the Italian, Thai, Swiss and Egyptian consulates.

Australian Federal Police said a number of packages sent to consulates and embassies in Melbourne and Canberra were being examined by emergency services and the circumstances around the incidents were under investigation. A worker at the Pakistani consulate in Melbourne opened one of the packages about 10am on Wednesday. It is understood the envelope, which looked like a normal letter, was addressed to the Consulate-General of Pakistan. Initial suspicions were raised by a spelling mistake on the envelope, with "consulate" misspelled. Victoria Police said they believed the consulates were specifically "targeted" and the situation was "not impacting the general community".

Metropolitan Fire Brigade station officer Bryan Kellett said a suspicious "envelope-sized" package was delivered to the Indian consulate last week, but that the alarm was not raised until Wednesday. "We treat it as the worst, now it will be examined as to exactly what the substance was and dealt with accordingly," he said. "Totally safe now, it's been sealed and is under police guard." Witnesses at the Spanish consulate on Elgin Street, Carlton, said police swarmed the area just after 2pm. One woman left about four hours later barefoot, and wearing a decontamination suit.
Diplomatic offices in Melbourne, Australia, are evacuated after suspicious packages were found.