The Australian Federal Police arrested three women at Melbourne and Sydney airports Thursday following their return from al-Roj, a detention camp in northeast Syria, and charged them with slavery and terrorism offenses tied to their time in the former Islamic State (IS) caliphate.
AFP Assistant Commissioner for Counter Terrorism Stephen Nutt said Kawsar Abbas, 53, arrived on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha and faces four counts of crimes against humanity, including possessing a slave and engaging in slave trading. Zeinab Ahmed, 31, on the same flight, faces two slavery offenses. Each offense carries a maximum of 25 years in prison.
At Sydney Airport, Janai Safar, 32, was charged by the NSW Joint Counter Terrorism Team with entering a declared conflict zone and joining IS. Each charge carries a maximum of 10 years in prison.
One ISIS bride has been charged and two others are expected to face charges after the women and their children arrived in Sydney and Melbourne from a detention camp in Syria.
Janai Shafar was arrested by Australian Federal Police and New South Wales Police at Sydney… pic.twitter.com/SRBGMN1d7r
— 7NEWS Queensland (@7NewsBrisbane) May 8, 2026
A fourth woman in the group was not arrested. Nine children who traveled with the group are expected to enter community reintegration programs.
The slavery charges stem from allegations that a Yazidi woman was held captive in the home of Mohammed Ahmad, a Melbourne man, the husband of Abbas and father of Zeinab Ahmed. The Yazidi woman told the ABC she was interviewed by AFP investigators and is prepared to testify. The charges may mark Australia’s first crimes against humanity prosecution.
“The safety of the community is the number one priority for all agencies involved,” Nutt said. Preparations for the women’s return had begun as early as 2015, he added.
Deakin University extremism researcher Joshua Roose said investigators were examining crimes committed by women within the caliphate. Roose told the ABC News, “Some of the worst forms of violence were in fact enacted by women.”
About 21 Australians remain at al-Roj, the ABC reported.
