Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton says he hopes Neil Prakash rots in a Turkish jail, as the federal government considers appealing a decision to reject the Melbourne-born terrorist's extradition.
A Turkish court today rejected Australia’s request for the extradition of the Australian Islamic State jihadist and recruiter, meaning he could soon be released from jail.
Prakash could be freed from Turkish custody if the court ascertains that he isn’t under investigation for other crimes, lawyer Mehmet Alper Unver says.
But Unver said the prosecution, which argued for Prakash’s extradition, had the right to appeal the verdict.
The suspected IS recruiter has been in custody near the border with Syria since October 2016 after he attempted to enter Turkey with false documents.
Neil Prakash appearing in an IS propaganda video. Source: Supplied
He has been held in a maximum-security jail in Gaziantep, in southern Turkey, since his capture.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is disappointed with the Turkish court decision but has vowed to continue trying to bring the Islamic State jihadist and recruiter back to Australia to face justice.
Mr Dutton said the best possible outcome for any terrorist was to be "targeted and killed" on the battlefield, but Australia had an interest in extraditing Prakash.
"From my perspective, I'm happy to see him rot in jail in Turkey," Mr Dutton said in Brisbane on Friday.
'Rot in jail': Peter Dutton. Source: AAP
The former rapper from Melbourne had featured in IS videos, has been linked to several attack plans in Australia and has urged lone wolf attacks against the United States.
Prakash, also known as Abu Khaled al-Cambodi has been linked to a failed Melbourne plot to behead a police officer and another attack that saw two officers stabbed outside a Melbourne police station.
The self-confessed IS member, also known by the alias Abu Khaled al-Cambodi, was described by former attorney-general George Brandis as the "the principal Australian reaching back from the Middle East into Australia".
Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop also expressed disappointment at the Turkish court's decision.
"We will continue to engage with Turkish authorities as they consider whether to appeal the extradition decision," she said in a statement on Friday.
Turkish prosecutors called for Prakash to be extradited to Australia, but Judge Ismail Deniz rejected the request, saying the conditions for extradition had not been made available to the court.
Prakash launched into an attack on the judge in a mix of English, Arabic and Turkish during proceedings.
"Allah is the legislator, not him," he said.
"Democracy is not legitimate. Islam is justice."
Prakash is the subject of an Australian Federal Police arrest warrant for "membership of a terrorist organisation", "advocating terrorism", "providing support to a terrorist organisation" and "incursions into foreign countries with the intention of engaging in hostile activities".
He has previously admitted being a member of Islamic State but said he had nothing to do with the group in Australia.
He faces a potential life sentence if convicted in Australia of terrorism offences.
