Four Australian families leave Roj camp for Damascus amid repatriation row

What happened

Four Australian families — 13 women and children in total — departed Roj camp in northeastern Syria on April 24 and were transported by bus to Damascus under escort from Syrian government officials, AP journalists reported. The Roj facility, run for security by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, holds relatives of suspected Islamic State militants. A Women’s Protection Units official said the departures were coordinated with Damascus and that the group would remain in the capital for about 72 hours before being “deported under security procedures.”

Context and Canberra's response

Australia’s deputy prime minister, Richard Marles, said Canberra is not participating in the repatriation and that Australian security agencies will monitor the situation; the government warned that returnees who committed crimes could face prosecution under laws that criminalized travel to parts of the former IS caliphate. The move follows an earlier aborted attempt in February to return 34 women and children and comes amid broader shifts in Syria, including clashes between government forces and the SDF, camp closures and transfers of suspected IS fighters to Iraq. as reported by AP News

This story has also been reported by: The Guardian