In Brief
- Some returning adults will face charges, the AFP commissioner has said.
- A family returning to NSW will be "actively monitored", the state's police commissioner says.
One family among a cohort linked to the self-proclaimed Islamic State group (IS) has spoken while en route back to Australia.
The families — consisting four women and nine children — are expected to arrive late on Thursday afternoon, after being held in northern Syria's al-Roj detention camp since 2019 following the IS group's collapse.
They were among 34 other Australian women and children at the camp, with the women often referred to as 'ISIS brides' given their perceived or real links to IS group fighters.
A camp official recently told SBS Kurdish that the group was "overjoyed" as they departed and hoped to "start a new life".
From the plane, one family told SBS News on Thursday morning: "The kids were so bubbly and happy to be making their way home.
"They said it's incredible, honestly. "
The majority of the families are set to arrive in Melbourne, with one woman and a child anticipated to land in Sydney.
Australian Federal Police Krissy Barrett has said some of the women will be arrested and charged on arrival, and others face "continued investigations".
NSW Police commissioner Mal Lanyon told Sky News on Thursday morning the force will "actively monitor" those returning to NSW.
"With people returning from declared areas, people who have been associated with terrorist organisations, we will actively monitor those people if they return to NSW," he said.
Lanyon said "operational reasons" restricted him from sharing information about planned arrests.
"We are working very closely with Commonwealth authorities."
In a statement to SBS News, Victoria Police said it was aware of those arriving but did not say whether it would take similar steps to the force in NSW.
"The assessment of applications for travel documents for Australian citizens seeking to return from any foreign conflict zone is managed by the Commonwealth government," a spokesperson said.
"Where required, Victoria Police works closely with state and federal agencies to facilitate the reintegration of women and children who return to Victoria from camps in Syria."
Asked what would happen to some of the children if their mothers were arrested, Education Minister Jason Clare said he expected their families would step in to provide care.
Clare also said reintegration into society of the children would be difficult.
"Kids don't get to choose who their parents are, and these children have seen sorts of things that no child should ever be exposed to, and it's going to take time for these children to reintegrate into Australian society," Clare told ABC TV on Thursday.
"I would expect that the federal police would want to run counter-extremism programs with all of the children that return."
The federal Opposition has criticised the government for not intervening to stop the families from returning.
Opposition defence spokesperson James Paterson told Sky News the "revelations" that some of the cohort would be arrested was evidence that they should not have been provided passports or temporary exclusion orders.
He accused the government of "secretly preparing" for the arrivals.
The federal government has said there were limits to measures stopping their return and insists it has not provided them with any support.
Clare said federal police would be monitoring the cohort closely upon their return.
"I've got faith in the Australian police. They know what they're doing. This is not their first rodeo," he said.
While some women travelled willingly to support their partners who wanted to fight for the IS group, advocates for the group say others were trafficked, or only went to the Middle East to keep their family together.
The Australian government has carried out two successful repatriation missions since the IS group was toppled in 2019.
The Morrison government brought back eight orphaned children in June 2019, while the Albanese government repatriated four women and 13 children in October 2022.
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