A group of approximately twelve Australians accused of ties to the defunct Islamic State is poised to stand trial in Iraq. Local Iraqi officials have reported the completion of interrogations involving over 5,700 detainees who were transferred from Syria earlier this year.
The Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq has stated that the next step involves forwarding these individuals to trial courts, with each case being handled based on the evidence and facts presented.
Among those likely to face trial is Tareq Kamleh, a Perth-born pediatrician known as “Dr. Jihad.” Iraqi authorities have previously suggested that his involvement with Islamic State extended beyond merely providing medical care, despite his claims in a recently surfaced interview that he never swore allegiance to the group.
Another individual possibly included in this group is Yusuf Zahab, now in his early twenties, who was taken to Syria at the age of twelve. Captured and separated from his family after the battle of Baghuz in March 2019, Zahab became lost within the Syrian prison system. His family, including his mother, returned to Australia in May after spending several years in the al-Roj refugee camp in northeastern Syria.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Judicial Council announced the conclusion of interrogations involving 5,704 defendants connected to the Islamic State. They stated that the next step would involve the referral of these cases to trial based on the collected evidence.
This announcement marked the first time the Judicial Council provided an overview of the nationalities of the prisoners, revealing that they come from 67 different countries. Of these detainees, 16 are from Arab nations, 19 from European Union countries, and 32 from other regions. The majority, 3,497, are Syrian nationals, while 474 are Iraqi.
The investigations have identified numerous individuals involved in various capacities within the terrorist organization, including leadership and operational roles. The Judicial Council indicated that the evidence collected revealed roles that extended beyond combat to include military, security, financial, and media functions.
Additionally, Iraqi authorities have gathered evidence of crimes against the Yazidi community, a Kurdish-speaking minority that IS has been accused of committing genocide against. The Judicial Council identified six defendants whose cases were linked to the enslavement of Yazidi women, detailing roles in their detention, transportation, and exploitation.
In July, the Albanese Government declared it would not assist any Australians who chose to join a terrorist organization. In response to Tareq Kamleh’s situation, Cabinet minister Clare O’Neil remarked that he could “rot in jail.”
The Judicial Council has permitted diplomats and consular representatives from various nations to visit their citizens during the interrogation process, alongside members of the International Committee of the Red Cross. The ABC has reached out to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Foreign Minister Penny Wong’s office for information on the Australian officials’ interactions with the detainees.
Following a review, some individuals have been released due to insufficient evidence, including one Finnish national, one American, and seven Iraqis. An additional 457 Syrians are set to be released as well.
This transfer of Islamic State prisoners to Iraq was facilitated by the US military, which began moving detainees from facilities controlled by Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria earlier this year. This action coincided with Syria’s new president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, regaining control over previously Kurdish-held territories amid the ongoing civil conflict.
The Supreme Judicial Council disclosed that interrogations commenced in February and that a special courtroom has been established to conduct trials remotely via video links, minimizing security risks associated with transporting high-risk prisoners.
