One nation’s leader, Pauline Hanson, criticized the government’s announced decision to allow a group of Australian women and children linked to the Islamic State to return to the country.
According to reports by The Australian and ABC, four children and 13 women are expected to arrive in Sydney soon after being taken from a detention camp in Syria.
They have been locked up in detention since the fall of the Islamic State in 2019, which was also the last year Australia repatriated people, eight orphans, from Syria.
Asked about the decision announced by the Albanian government, Senator Hanson said she had “real concerns” about it.
“These people fought and supported their husbands in their fight against Western civilizations. They hate us out of revenge, “she told Sky News on Friday.
“Now they are using our sympathy to return to Australia.
“I have real concerns about it.”
Ms. Hanson also said she does not “trust” the group of women and children and believes the money spent on repatriating them could be better used.
“Monitoring these people will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars,” Senator Hanson said.
“I believe that if they continue to dress and act as they do, they will be unemployed and will receive unemployment benefits for the rest of their life in this country.
“I just don’t trust them and based on the age of the kids watching their dads and standing next to their dads… that’s all they know… terrorism, hate.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton also expressed doubts about the announced decision.
He said that, based on his experience as a former Minister of Defense and Home Affairs and a recent briefing he received from the Director General of Security, this decision was not in Australia’s “best interest”.
“I don’t think it’s in our country’s best interest. Of course I wish the families good luck and hope the transition is successful, ”she told Sky News on Friday.
“But I worry about people who come back from a war theater, especially when they have found themselves in a situation where they have mingled with people who hate our country, hate our way of life; terrorists who have committed terrorist offenses or intend to commit such offenses.
“So the government has to explain and the Prime Minister has to stand up today to explain to the Australian public what measures they have put in place.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese did not go into detail when questioned by reporters on Friday and demanded that the information not be made public.
“We will continue to act on national security advice, which we have done so far and what the previous government has done as well,” he said.
“So we will follow this national security advice and we will always act to keep Australians safe and that is our goal and that is what we will do.
“I have just been asked earlier if I am concerned about the release of information while there are ongoing issues and I am not going to add any.
“And I would tell my fellow parliamentarians who are aware of the national security implications here of being information in the public arena that national security agencies would rather stay out of the public domain at this point, I don’t. I intend to add to it.
He did not say whether women would be charged under the anti-terrorism laws.
Albanian also pointed out that the previous government had brought back children from Syria in 2019.