Australian Government Bars One ISIS-Linked Woman From Returning From Syria

The remaining Australian women linked to Islamic State have left the al-Roj camp in Syria, but the Australian government refuses to let one of them back into the country. One of the Australian women hoping to return from a detention camp in Syria will be blocked from coming home by the temporary exclusion order imposed on her by the Albanese government.

Representatives of the family had hoped the government would relent and allow the woman, who has a child, to return to Australia if Syria deported her.

The exclusion order would be flagged to the airline if she bought a ticket and the woman would be refused passage. A government source said the order would likely be enforced at a hub such as Doha or in Damascus. Under the order, the woman maintains her Australian citizenship so is not rendered stateless, but she is placed in limbo.

It is unclear whether the single-entry passport the government has granted her could be used to travel anywhere else.

The situation poses a dilemma for the woman, whose child is not subject to the order. She can either stay in Syria with her child, who is also an Australian citizen, or send the child to Australia with the remaining six women and 13 children. Four women and nine children who had been in the camp returned to Australia earlier this month, and three of the women were arrested.

Two were charged with crimes against humanity relating to enslavement and using a slave, and one was charged with entering a terrorist zone. The remaining seven women and 14 children left the camp late this week and arrived in Damascus. Camp director Haval Rashid confirmed the movement of the women, saying there were now no Australians left in al-Roj.

Asked if Australia would provide them consular assistance during that time, the government source said that since it had not offered assistance to the women and children in the camp, it would not offer help for someone in an airport in a relatively safe part of the world.

The exclusion order was imposed by Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke in February. An exclusion order is placed on ASIO advice if the minister suspects it would help prevent a terrorist act or if ASIO assesses the person to be a risk to security. International law professor Don Rothwell at ANU said the woman was in completely unknown legal territory because this was the first time such an order would be tested.

The lawyer for the women did not respond to queries about a challenge or whether they would apply for a return permit.