Australia Refuses Repatriation of IS-Linked Citizens from Syria

Melbourne, Australia – The Australian government has reaffirmed its stance against repatriating 34 women and children with alleged ties to the Islamic State (IS) group from Syria, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated on Tuesday. The group, comprised of 11 families, had been attempting to return to Australia but were turned back by Syrian authorities on Monday due to procedural issues, officials reported.

Limited Repatriation Efforts to Date

Since the fall of the Islamic State group in 2019, Australia has only repatriated two groups of citizens from Syrian camps with government assistance. Other Australians have returned independently, without government support.

“You Create Your Bed, You Lie In It”

Albanese declined to comment on reports that the women and children possessed Australian passports. He firmly stated that his government would provide no support for their repatriation, expressing a lack of sympathy for those who traveled overseas to join IS. “We have no sympathy, frankly, for people who travelled overseas in order to participate in what was an attempt to establish a caliphate to undermine, destroy, our way of life. And then, as my mother would say, ‘You make your bed, now you sleep in it,’” he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Legal Challenges and Potential Charges

A previous legal challenge by the international charity Save the Children, seeking to compel the Australian government to repatriate citizens from Syrian camps, was unsuccessful. The Federal Court ruled in favor of the government in 2024. Albanese indicated that if the group were to reach Australia without government assistance, they could face criminal charges. Traveling to the former IS stronghold of al-Raqqa province in Syria was a crime under Australian law between 2014 and 2017, carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

International Context and Recent Events

The issue of repatriating IS-linked citizens is a global one. While some countries, including Iraq, the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Canada, have repatriated citizens from Syrian camps, others have not. This issue resurfaced in Australia following a recent attack at a Jewish festival in Bondi Beach, allegedly inspired by IS.

Camp Conditions and Passport Controversy

Hakmiyeh Ibrahim, administrator of the Roj camp in northeastern Syria, stated that relatives of the Australians claimed the Australian government had prepared passports and travel documentation for them. However, Albanese could not confirm this information. Syrian authorities reportedly turned the group back due to a lack of coordination regarding their travel arrangements.

The last group of Australians repatriated with government assistance arrived in Sydney in October 2022, consisting of four mothers and 13 children. Eight children of deceased Australian IS fighters were repatriated in 2019 by the previous Conservative government.