‘They raped us’: Local ISIS victims’ plea to keep Islamic State out
The Western Sydney Assyrian community is infuriated by the Albanese government’s plan to repatriate family members of Islamic State fighters who turned their back on Australia.
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The Albanese government’s decision to repatriate the family members of Islamic State fighters has been slammed as “irresponsible and offensive” by members of western Sydney’s largest Assyrian community, many of whom fled Syria and Iraq to escape ISIS atrocities.
“ISIS raped our women and burned down our churches and homes,” said Fairfield Deputy Mayor Reni Barkho, an Assyrian who migrated to Australia in 1994 and has a number of family members who escaped Islamic State.
“We can never forgive or forget or welcome those that travelled to help persecute us in our own homes in Iraq and Syria,” he said.
“We are grateful that Australia provided us refuge, but Prime Minister Albanese should not be bringing back anyone who chose to support ISIS back to our community.”
Assyrians are a mostly Christian ethnic minority who have had a presence in the Middle East since before the arrival of Islam and faced horrific persecution by Islamic State when it attempted to set up a caliphate in the 2010s.
In 2015, ISIS made headlines globally when it attacked the Assyrian village of Tel Tamr in the country’s north-east, killing 64 defenders and kidnapping 231 men, women, and children while also destroying 11 churches.
That same year, the government of Tony Abbott issued 12,000 visas to persecuted religious minorities fleeing ISIS, with the majority going to Assyrians and many of them settling in the Fairfield area.
Fairfield sits in the heart of Energy Minister Chris Bowen’s electorate of McMahon.
A search of Hansard and social media revealed that Mr Bowen has previously been a strong supporter of the Assyrian community, moving motions in favour of their protection in parliament and wishing them well on their important holidays.
However, when asked whether he supported the government undertaking a massive, multimillion dollar operation to return ISIS wives to Australia in light of locals’ concerns, a spokesman for Mr Bowen directed The Daily Telegraph to the office of Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil who said, “The Albanese Government’s overriding priority is the protection of Australians and Australia’s national interests, informed by national security advice.”
Assyrian community activist Jacqueline Georges, secretary of the Coalition of Assyrian Parties in Australia said this was not good enough.
“We are not happy and we hope the government reverses its decision and says no because everyone in our community and around the world knows what ISIS has done to our people.”
Referring to the wives of ISIS fighters, many of whom left Australia voluntarily for life in the radical Islamic caliphate, Ms Georges said, “we don’t feel it is wise for them to come and live again in this peaceful country.”
“We won’t be safe if they will be here – these people wanted our heritage to go.”
Fairfield Mayor Frank Carbone said of those being brought back to Australia, “they will never be welcomed in our city where so many have fled to seek refuge after being persecuted by ISIS.”
“Anthony Albanese should never forget that many here have had their families killed and homes burned to the ground.”
“If Albo loves ISIS sympathisers so much, he can put them up in his own neighbourhood, or maybe send them to Scotland Island,” he said.
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