Archive photo: Unidentified women move through the camp holding family members of suspected ISIS fighters in the Roj camp in eastern Syria.
On Thursday, Australian authorities arrested three women on suspicion of links to ISIS after they returned from Syria with their children, and police will prepare them on charges related to slavery and terrorism.According to Agence France-Presse, the women were among four Australian women and nine children repatriated from detention camps in northeastern Syria, where they spent years after the collapse of the caliphate declared by ISIS.The Associated Press news agency reported that two Qatar Airways flights carrying the returnees landed separately in Melbourne and Sydney on Thursday. One flight took three women and eight children to Melbourne, while another woman and her son arrived in Sydney.A 54-year-old woman has been arrested at Melbourne Airport and is expected to face four charges of crimes against humanity related to slavery, Australian Federal Police said.According to Reuters, the accusations include allegations of possession of slaves, use of slaves, and trafficking in slaves in Syria.A 31-year-old woman was also arrested on the same flight and is expected to face two slavery-related charges, while a 32-year-old woman arrested in Sydney is set to be charged with being a member of a terrorist organization and traveling to a restricted area.
Women may face severe penalties
Assistant Commissioner Stephen Knott said the alleged crimes were linked to activities in Syria and stressed that “community safety is the first priority for all agencies involved.”Some charges carry a penalty of up to 25 years in prison.A fourth woman traveling with the group had not been arrested as of Thursday evening.Under Australian law, traveling to the former ISIS stronghold of Raqqa between 2014 and 2017 without a legitimate reason is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Years he spent in Syrian detention camps
Several women reportedly traveled to Syria between 2012 and 2016, often alongside husbands linked to ISIS. After the territorial defeat of the extremist group in 2019, relatives of suspected fighters were detained in camps such as Al-Roj in northeastern Syria.Some of the women told reporters they had spent up to 12 years in Syria, with children born in harsh conditions in the camp.ABC reporter Bridget Rollason, who traveled on one of the flights, said one woman told her she was “willing to take the hit” of potential arrest so her children could return to Australia.“One woman I spoke to said what she missed most was coffee,” Rollason said, according to the Associated Press. “She said she couldn’t wait to get to Little Collins Street in Melbourne to have coffee again.”The return of the women has raised controversy again in Australia regarding the return of citizens linked to extremist organizations.Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke previously described the women’s decision to join ISIS as a “horrific choice to join a dangerous terrorist organisation”.Meanwhile, child welfare groups have urged authorities to focus on children’s well-being. Matt Tinkler, CEO of Save the Children Australia, said the priority now should be to help children “resume normal lives” in Australia, according to the Associated Press.Australia has previously returned small groups of women and children from Syrian camps in 2019, 2022 and 2025.It is believed that about 21 Australians are still present in Al Roj camp.
reconnaissance
Should women returning from conflict zones face mandatory rehabilitation programmes?
