Accused ‘ISIS bride’ renounces terrorists, lawyer says
A woman accused of traveling to Syria, joining the Islamic State and marrying some members of the organization has renounced the terror group and violent jihad, her lawyer said.
Rayann El Houli, 34, was due to apply for bail in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Monday morning but her lawyer Peter Morrissey SC asked for an adjournment.
He told the court that the prosecution had expressed concerns about the risk of Al-Houli endangering the community and claimed there was no evidence that Al-Houli had renounced ISIS.
Mr Morrissey said he needed more time to obtain the relevant material but had been instructed to make a statement on behalf of his client.
“He renounces ISIS and violent jihad,” he told the court.
“He wants nothing to do with it, not now, not in the future, not directly or indirectly, not for himself, not for the people he loves, and especially not for his children.”
Al Houli was charged on Thursday by the Australian Federal Police with traveling to a declared conflict zone and joining the terrorist group Islamic State.
Police allege he traveled to Syria between 2013 and 2014, then was detained by Kurdish forces in 2019 and held with his family in the al-Hawl detention camp in northeastern Syria.
The 34-year-old man crossed Lebanon with his children and another woman and returned to Australia in September.
Chief Judge Lisa Hannan outlined some of the allegations against Al Houli on Monday; among them was that Al Houli deliberately traveled to Syria with the aim of joining ISIS.
She is also alleged to have married some members of the group and expressed radical views while in Syria, including supporting acts of martyrdom and the killing of non-believers.
Police also claim that Al-Houli only left Syria when ISIS was defeated and not due to a change of views.
Mr Morrissey told the court his client had renounced the terror group; This was proven by his statement to the court and his client’s decision to return to Australia.
Mr Morrissey told the court on Monday that El Houli showed her face as a “matter of good faith” after appearing in a burqa for the first time on Thursday.
“This is a pretty big deal,” he said.
Mr Morrissey acknowledged that his client had not yet taken part in counter-terrorism programmes, but said he would be willing to attend any courses suggested by the prosecution.
Mr Morrissey said the defense was also considering appointing a risk assessor to assess Al Houli before the bail application is made.
Judge Hannan supported this approach, saying the views El Houli was accused of expressing were “extremely worrying”.
“These are very serious charges and the risk is really serious,” he told the court.
While his bail application was postponed to a date to be determined, El Houli was kept behind bars.
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