Australia says ISIS-linked citizens in Syria plan to return home
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – 13 Australian citizens currently held in northeast Syria in connection with the extremist group Islamic State are planning to return home without any government assistance, Australia announced on Wednesday.
Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said that authorities face “very serious limits” in preventing Australian citizens from re-entering the country, stressing that the government would not facilitate their return.
“The government is not assisting and will not assist these individuals. They made an appalling, disgraceful decision,” Burke told reporters, noting the group includes four women and nine children.
He added that any returnee suspected of criminal activity would “face the full force of the law without exception,” without specifying potential charges.
Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett said that authorities have been preparing for such cases for more than a decade. Some returnees may be arrested and charged upon arrival, while others could remain under investigation. Children, she said, will be placed in community reintegration and support programs.
Australian officials have maintained contingency plans since 2014 to manage individuals linked to extremist organizations, amid concerns over citizens who travelled to Syria and Iraq during the height of ISIS control.
Several Australian women travelled to Syria between 2012 and 2016 to join husbands who allegedly became ISIS members. Following the territorial defeat of the group in 2019, many were detained in camps in northeast Syria, while a number of others had previously returned home, according to Australian media.
On April 25, four Australian women and nine of their children and grandchildren departed Roj camp in northeast Syria in what appeared to be a renewed attempt to return to Australia.
Camp administration confirmed at the time that Syrian interior forces escorted the group from the camp and transported them directly to Damascus.
Roj camp director Hakamiyeh Ibrahim said the coordination was carried out between camp authorities and the Syrian transitional government to facilitate the families’ onward travel to their home country, noting there were no immediate plans for other Australians to leave.
The departure followed a failed attempt in February, when a larger group of Australian women and children were unable to complete a similar transfer due to what was described as an administrative coordination issue with Syrian government forces during the lengthy road journey to the capital.