Two Australian women accused of supporting the Islamic State group have been charged with serious terrorism-related offences after returning to Australia for the first time in nearly a decade. The pair, a 53-year-old mother and her 31-year-old daughter, arrived in Melbourne on Thursday evening after being repatriated from Syria’s Roj detention camp. They were immediately arrested after landing at Melbourne International Airport on a Qatar Airways flight. Australian Federal Police alleged that both women committed crimes against humanity while living under the Islamic State’s self-declared caliphate. Authorities said the older woman was allegedly involved in the purchase of a female slave for USD 10,000. The younger woman is accused of knowingly keeping the enslaved woman inside the household.
Police said the two women had travelled to Syria in 2014 during the rise of the Islamic State group and remained there until Kurdish forces detained them in 2019 following the collapse of the caliphate. Counter-terror officials described the allegations as extremely serious and confirmed that investigations remain ongoing. Australian Federal Police counter-terror chief Stephen Nutt said authorities were continuing to examine activities linked to the pair during their years in Syria. The women had reportedly been held in the notorious Roj detention camp, where many foreign women and children linked to ISIS have remained stranded for years. Their repatriation comes amid growing international pressure on Western governments to deal with citizens detained in Syrian camps. Australia has previously brought back smaller groups of women and children in 2019, 2022 and 2025.
Alongside the Melbourne arrests, another Australian woman, Janai Safar, was separately arrested after arriving in Sydney. Safar, 32, has been charged with entering a restricted area and joining a terrorist organisation. Police allege she travelled to Syria in 2015 to join her husband, who was reportedly associated with the Islamic State group. In total, four women and nine children were repatriated from Syria to Australia on Thursday. One of the returning women was not arrested upon arrival. Authorities have not disclosed further details regarding her situation or legal status. The repatriation operation reflects the broader challenge many Western countries face in handling citizens linked to extremist groups abroad.
The issue of so-called “ISIS brides” has remained highly controversial in Australia and several other Western nations. Hundreds of women from countries including Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom travelled to Syria and Iraq during the peak of the Islamic State’s influence, often accompanying husbands or family members who joined the group. Human rights organisations have argued that governments should repatriate citizens, especially children, from camps such as Roj due to deteriorating humanitarian conditions. Earlier this year, the Australian Human Rights Commission urged the government to assist in bringing home 34 women and children still stranded in Syria. However, critics argue that those who willingly joined the Islamic State should face the consequences of their decisions abroad. The debate has remained politically and emotionally charged across Australia.
Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke described the decision by the women to join the Islamic State group as “a horrific choice.” Authorities maintain that returning citizens suspected of involvement with extremist groups will face strict legal scrutiny and prosecution where evidence exists. The charges against the women highlight Australia’s continuing efforts to address national security concerns linked to citizens who travelled to conflict zones during the rise of ISIS. Officials have also emphasised the importance of monitoring and rehabilitating children returning from detention camps. Legal proceedings against the accused women are expected to continue in Australian courts in the coming months. The case has once again reignited debate over terrorism, accountability and the reintegration of former ISIS-linked families into society.
