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Man barred from leaving Aust to fight IS

A Melbourne man wants to renounce his citizenship and join the Turkish fight against Islamic State, but says Australia won't let him.

An Australian passport
A Melbourne man wants to renounce his citizenship and fight IS, but says Australia won't let him. (AAP)

A Melbourne man who "hates" Australia and wants to fight Islamic State overseas says the government won't let him leave, even though he's willing to renounce his citizenship.

But Immigration Minister Peter Dutton says letting radicalised Australian citizens fight overseas is more dangerous than forcing them to stay home.

Kadir Kaya, 21, wants to move to Turkey, but the Australian government is standing in his way, he told Melbourne radio station 3AW on Thursday.

"I am willing to renounce my Australian citizenship, only on the basis I get to Turkey," he said.

Mr Kaya said he "hates" Australia and felt targeted by authorities for being Muslim.

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"I don't feel like a citizen in this country," he said.

"I don't respect the values and what Australia stands for."

But Mr Kaya, who was born in Melbourne to Turkish migrant parents, said that resentment did not mean he wanted to hurt Australia.

It's understood Australian authorities confiscated the dual citizen's passport 18 months ago while he was trying to make his way to Turkey.

The Melbourne man said he had been on an ASIO watch list for a year-and-a-half because of his attempt to reach Turkey, but maintained he was not a threat to Australia.

The immigration minister said if people were targeted by Australia's intelligence agencies, it was because they were security threats.

"People are targeted because they're a security threat to our country, and if they are planning an attack, if they are involved in preaching hate, if they're a security threat to the Australian public, then people are targeted for that reason," Mr Dutton said.

Mr Kaya agreed with calls by far-right group United Patriots Front that people who didn't love Australia should get out, but said leaving was harder than people realised.


2 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AAP



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