A Palestinian grandmother has been released from an immigration detention centre a week after her visa was “personally” cancelled by a federal assistant minister over alleged security concerns.
Maha Almassri, 61, was detained by Australian Border Force (ABF) officers at her son’s home in Sydney’s west last Thursday and taken to Villawood Immigration Detention Centre.
Ms Almassri fled Gaza in early 2024 and arrived in Australia, where she was granted a bridging visa.
In a document seen by the ABC, Assistant Minister for Citizenship and Customs Julian Hill “personally” made the decision to cancel her visa because he reasonably suspected that she “does not pass the character test”.
The document stated that the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) advised the immigration department “it had assessed Ms Almassri to be directly or indirectly a risk to security”.
The ABC has confirmed with multiple sources familiar with the case that the 61-year-old was released from the detention centre on Thursday.
Tony Burke says the government will not comment on the visa “cancellation”. (ABC News: Matt Roberts)
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the government would not comment on the visa “cancellation” but said that any person given an “adverse security assessment” remains in detention.
“Any information in the public domain is being supplied by the individual or her family and is not necessarily consistent with the information held by our intelligence and security agencies,” Mr Burke said in a statement on Friday.
“For people in Australia who have been given an adverse security assessment, none of them have been given visas, and they remain in detention in accordance with the Migration Act.”
‘Loving mother, sister, and grandmother’
Ms Almassri’s family and her legal team declined to comment on Friday.
In a statement provided a day after she was detained, her family condemned the dawn raid on the “loving mother, sister, and grandmother” and questioned the reasons provided for cancelling her visa.
“She has lost members of her family back in Gaza; her home and town of Khan Younis have been systematically bombed and destroyed,” the statement read.
“We are all for protecting this great nation but are very concerned by the vague ASIO assessment and report, which was accepted by the immigration department.”
Mr Hill has also been contacted for comment.