Second ‘ISIS bride’ group leaves Syrian refugee camp
A second group of Australian women and children with links to the terrorist group Islamic State have also left a refugee camp in Syria.
According to ABC, the group left the Al-Roj camp on Thursday before their return was announced.
They are expected to depart for the capital Damascus for their return flight to Australia, but the timing remains uncertain.
It comes after a group of four women and nine children with links to the Islamic State arrived in Australia in early May after leaving the same refugee camp.
Three of the women in this group were arrested upon arrival and remain in custody.
Two of them face slavery-related charges, while the other is accused of joining a terrorist organization and traveling to a declared conflict zone.
Federal Minister Tanya Plibersek said the second group would face repercussions upon their return.
“They will face the same consequences as the first group,” he told ABC TV on Friday.
“If there is any crime they are accused of, they will be taken into custody and dealt with the full force of the law.”
It is understood that 7 women and 14 children remained in Syria’s Al Roj camp after the first group left.
One of the women was granted a temporary exclusion order banning her from entering Australia for two years on national security grounds.
The group could return to Australia from the refugee camp because they are citizens, but Prime Minister Anthony Albanese insisted they were not given any support.
“The US State Department is very keen for people to leave these camps,” he told ABC Radio on Wednesday.
“There was no government official on the plane (in the previous group) because we were not and will not be providing any assistance.”
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