https://arab.news/4398m
- Group with no papers was detained in Lebanon during journey home
- Canberra ‘monitoring’ their situation
SYDNEY: Two Australian women with links to Daesh terrorists and their four children have smuggled themselves out of Syria and returned home, with Canberra saying on Friday it was “monitoring” their situation.
The so-called “Daesh brides” and their children left Syria and were detained in neighboring Lebanon as they did not have valid travel documents, but were given Australian passports by Canberra’s agencies.
An official spokesperson said the government “is not providing assistance and is not repatriating individuals” in Syrian camps holding people suspected of ties to Daesh members.
“Our agencies have been monitoring these individuals for some time,” they added. “If any of those people find their own way to return, our security agencies are satisfied that they are prepared and will be able to act in the interests of community safety.”
In 2023, an Australian woman rescued from a squalid Syrian detention camp faced court on charges linked to her former husband’s role within Daesh.
Mariam Raad was repatriated in October the previous year as part of a humanitarian mission to free Australian women and children from Al-Hol and Roj camps. The women were in most cases the wives of Daesh fighters, who said they were forced or tricked into following their husbands to Syria.
Human Rights Watch has praised the government for rescuing Australians from “horrific” conditions.