Turkey deports Australian man accused of being IS terrorist in Syria

An Australian foreign fighter has been deported from Turkey.

Women queue for aid supplies at al-Hol camp, home to Islamic State-affiliated families near Hasakeh, Syria.

Women queue for aid supplies at al-Hol camp, home to Islamic State-affiliated families near Hasakeh, Syria. Source: AP

An Australian man suspected of fighting with terror group IS in Syria will be extradited to Queensland after being deported from Turkey. 

Agim Ajazi was flown from Turkey to Adelaide where he appeared via video-link in the Magistrates Court on Monday.

He was arrested by the Queensland Joint Counter-Terrorism Team and taken into custody on his arrival into Adelaide on Sunday. 

Ajazi, believed to be from the Gold Coast originally, will now be extradited to Queensland.
He did not apply for bail or contest the extradition request. 

In a brief statement on Sunday night, Turkey's Interior Ministry said an "Australian national" had been "deported back to his country". 

Last month, Turkey called on Australia to take back three IS fighters in its custody in northern Syria.

They were among more than 950 foreign fighters and families being held by Turkish officials.

Since mid-November, Turkey has begun sending them back to their home countries and has criticised countries that have refused to repatriate them. 

“Turkey is not a hotel for ISIL fighters,” Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu said last week. 

The 30-year-old Australian man is one of 21 suspected foreign fighters deported in the past three weeks from countries including Britain, Denmark and Germany.
A Syrian militiaman holds up a captured banner of the so-called Islamic State after the militants were pushed out of Raqqa, northeast Syria.
A Syrian militiaman holds up a captured banner of the so-called Islamic State after the militants were pushed out of Raqqa, northeast Syria. Source: AP
Under Australian terrorism laws, suspected IS fighters can be prosecuted in Australia even if the alleged offences occurred overseas. 

Australian family members of so-called IS brides and their children stuck in Syria have also called on the government to get them out. 

While the Australian government has so far repatriated a group of orphans, it argues a mission to pull out the remaining women and children would be too dangerous.

In July, new laws were passed to ban extremists who fight in foreign conflicts from returning to Australia for up to two years. 

A spokesperson for Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said there is no "current or impending threat to the community from the arrest".

"It will be alleged the man was a member of the proscribed terrorist organisation Jabhat Fatah al-Sham (JFS) previously known as Jabhat al-Nusra (JN) and engaged in hostile activities against a foreign government," the minister's office said in a statement.  

"The offences are very serious and, if found guilty, carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. 

"Australian law enforcement and intelligence agencies are committed to working together to keep Australians safe."


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3 min read
Published 9 December 2019 3:21pm
Updated 9 December 2019 9:08pm
Source: SBS News



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