MELBOURNE, Australia
The Australian government has decided against deporting a group of 34 women and children with suspected links to the Islamic State group from Syria, as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Tuesday.
Initially, these women and children, who belong to 11 families, were set to fly back to Australia. However, Syrian officials detained them at a camp on Monday due to some procedural complications.
Since the Islamic State’s downfall in 2019, only two groups of Australians have been brought home from Syrian camps with aid from the government. Others are managing to return independently.
Albanese chose not to address reports suggesting that the detained individuals held Australian passports. He clearly stated, “We’re not providing any support and we’re not going to repatriate people” during an interview with Australian Broadcasting in Melbourne.
He further expressed a lack of sympathy for those who traveled abroad to support efforts to establish a caliphate that threatens Australian values. As he put it, “Make your own bed and lie in it,” echoing his mother’s words.
Albanese reflected on how, more than ten years ago, Islamic State militants seized significant portions of both Syria and Iraq, creating a self-proclaimed caliphate. Raqqa was declared its capital, attracting jihadists from around the world who settled and started families there.
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor urged Albanese to clarify whether the government might prevent Australians from returning. Citing a Temporary Exclusion Order, he emphasized the need to keep out individuals who align with terrorist ideologies, which contradict democratic values and fundamental freedoms.
When pressed about the possibility of implementing a temporary exclusion order, Albanese avoided giving a direct answer, stating, “What we do when it comes to national security issues is to respond appropriately based on the advice of the security authorities.”
Albanese mentioned that Save the Children, an international charity focused on children’s welfare, had been unable to convince an Australian court that the government had an obligation to repatriate its citizens from Syrian camps.
After the Federal Court ruled in favor of the government in 2024, Save the Children Australia’s CEO argued that there exists a moral duty to bring families back. Albanese cautioned that if these individuals returned without government assistance, they could face legal repercussions.
Under Australian law, from 2014 to 2017, it was illegal to travel to Raqqa or other caliphate regions without a legitimate reason, potentially leading to a ten-year prison sentence. “It’s unfortunate that children are also affected, but we are not providing support, and those who return will face the full force of the law if they have broken it,” he added.
Despite the defeat of the Islamic State by a U.S.-led coalition by 2017 in Iraq and 2019 in Syria, IS sleeper cells continue to carry out attacks in both nations. Thousands of militants and many women and children associated with them were moved into camps during the conflict.
Hakumiyeh Ibrahim, the administrator of the Loj camp in northeastern Syria, stated that Australian relatives mentioned the government had provided passports and travel documents for camp residents, suggesting they collect them.
The last group of Australians repatriated from Syrian camps arrived in Sydney back in October 2022, comprising four mothers and 13 children who were once partners of Islamic State supporters. The government had assessed this group as the most vulnerable among the detained Australians.
Back in 2019, eight children of two deceased Australian IS fighters were brought back from Syria by the conservative government that succeeded a center-left administration.
Interest in IS supporters has surged again in Australia following a tragic incident where 15 people were killed at a Jewish festival in Bondi Beach, with attackers reportedly inspired by IS.
While some nations are repatriating their citizens with links to IS from Syria, others are taking a different stance. Iraq has brought back most of its nationals, who represent a significant portion of detainees after Syrians. The U.S., Germany, Britain, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Canada have all repatriated their citizens from these camps.
Families returning from the Loj camp last year included nationals from Germany, Britain, and France.
Separately, thousands of suspected IS fighters held in northeastern Syria are being transferred to Iraq by the U.S. military for trial.
