Australia repatriates women, children linked to Islamic State group from Syrian camp

Flights carrying Australian women and children with alleged links to the Islamic State group arrived in Australia on Thursday after years spent in detention camps in Syria, with authorities indicating that criminal investigations into the women could follow. Islamic State

According to Australian authorities, a group comprising three women and eight children arrived in Melbourne aboard a Qatar Airways flight from Doha, while another woman and her son landed separately in Sydney shortly afterwards.

The Australian government had announced a day earlier that 13 Australian nationals linked to camps in north-eastern Syria would be repatriated. The individuals had spent several years in detention facilities established after the collapse of the Islamic State’s self-declared caliphate spanning parts of Syria and Iraq.

Australian police said the women could face criminal prosecution over alleged activities during their time in Islamic State-controlled territories. Authorities have conducted investigations for years into Australians suspected of involvement in terrorism offences and crimes against humanity linked to the conflict in Syria.

Investigations into atrocities continue

Joshua Roose of Deakin University said investigators were examining allegations involving enforcement activities inside the Islamic State territory, including treatment of Yazidi women and implementation of strict sharia regulations.

“Some of the worst forms of violence were in fact enacted by women,” Roose told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, stressing the need to examine women’s roles within extremist structures.

The repatriation comes after years of resistance by successive Australian governments to bringing back citizens from Syrian camps, despite pressure from humanitarian groups and legal challenges.

In 2024, Save the Children Australia unsuccessfully approached a court seeking to compel the government to repatriate Australians detained in Syrian camps.

Focus shifts to welfare of children

Save the Children Australia chief executive Mat Tinkler said authorities should prioritise the rehabilitation and welfare of the returned children.

“Two-thirds of this cohort are children,” Tinkler said, adding that attention should now shift towards helping them rebuild their lives in Australia.

Australia has previously repatriated groups of women and children from Syrian detention camps on two separate occasions, while some Australians linked to the conflict zone returned independently without government assistance.