Albanese declares ‘zero sympathy’ for ISIS brides as Yazidi community lives in fear
Members of the local Yazidi community who have fled persecution in the Middle East say they have been re-traumatised by the high-profile arrival of four so-called ISIS brides, while community leaders are calling on authorities to hold accountable anyone who enslaves or exploits members of the minority group.
An estimated 20 ISIS-linked women and children trapped in a camp in northern Syria may seek to return to Australia in the coming weeks after a group of 13 arrived on Thursday night; The three women are quickly detained by the police and charged with crimes ranging from slavery to participation in a terrorist organization.
The crimes against humanity committed against two of the women returnees are the first of their kind in Australia, making the case historically significant.
As the women appeared in court in Sydney and Melbourne on Friday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese declared that while he welcomed the legal proceedings, he had “zero sympathy” for Australians traveling to join the Islamic State’s self-declared caliphate.
Zahra Ahmad, the widow of notorious Islamic State member Mohammed Zahab, was not arrested after returning to Melbourne and left the airport surrounded by a group of supporters acting as security guards.
Australian Federal Police assistant commissioner Stephen Nutt said investigations were still ongoing when announcing the charges against Zahra’s younger sister Zeinab Ahmad and her mother Kawsar Ahmad, as well as former health sciences student Janai Safar, on Thursday night.
“This remains an active investigation into very serious allegations,” he said.
Safar was refused bail in Sydney on Friday after being charged with entering a declared area and joining a terrorist group. The accused Melbourne women will seek to return to society at a bail hearing on Monday.
Kawsar Abbas (called Kawsar Ahmad in court documents) and his daughter Zeinab Ahmad are accused of crimes against humanity, including the enslavement of a Yazidi woman.
“The Yazidi community still bears the pain of genocide, displacement and the loss of thousands of innocent people,” said Sami Sheebo, a Yazidi community leader who fled Iraq to Australia in 2018.
“For many survivors, especially the women who endured ISIS captivity and slavery, these developments bring back very painful memories and emotional scars.”
Thousands of Yazidi men were killed, while women and girls were abducted, enslaved and subjected to horrific abuse after the Islamic State took control of parts of Iraq in 2014, which was deemed a genocide by the United Nations commission of inquiry.
Sheebo said the community was calling on authorities to fully investigate Australians accused of supporting terrorism or participating in crimes against humanity.
“We respect Australia’s legal system and democratic values,” he said. “At the same time, survivors deserve justice, protection and assurance that their suffering is taken seriously.”
Another Yazidi leader said community members live in fear of encountering one of their former captors on the street.
Thousands of Yazidis, a Kurdish-speaking religious minority whose members are mostly based in northern Iraq, have settled in Toowoomba, Queensland, in recent years, while others have found their homes in Coffs Harbor on the NSW North Coast.
“One of the things that distinguishes our society from the lawless barbarism of ISIS is that we believe in the rule of law,” Albanese told reporters in Melbourne on Friday.
“And the rule of law means that if you’re an Australian citizen, you have certain rights,” he said.
“It is true that the US government and others encouraged us to do this. I have absolutely zero sympathy for these people because we chose to make our own decisions as a sovereign state and not provide them with any support. But I also have sympathy for children who are victims of the decisions their parents made.”
Albanese said it was important for children to receive support because of the harsh conditions they live in Syrian camps and their exposure to “a terrible, terrible ideology that is trying to destroy our way of life.”
Describing the charges against the Melbourne women as “unprecedented”, Ben Saul, professor of international law at the University of Sydney, said: “In the last 75 years, Australia has not successfully prosecuted any international crimes. These are certainly the first crimes against humanity in Australian history.”
Besides specific charges related to alleged slavery, prosecutors must show that these charges occurred in the broader context of systematic oppression of a specific population, he said.
“If the charges are proven, it will send a message about Australia’s commitment to international law,” he said.
Opposition home affairs spokesman Jonno Duniam questioned why the government had not applied for an interim restraining order against the women if there was sufficient evidence to justify their detention.
“So why haven’t they refused the passports, given that there are clauses under section 14 of the Passport Act that allow a minister to cancel or withhold a passport on national security grounds or because of a risk to national security?” he asked.
“The government has talked a big game here, talked about the full force of the law. And I hope the hard-working, honest men and women of the AFP and ASIO have done everything they can to make a strong case against these alleged perpetrators of these crimes, which I’m sure they have done.”
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