MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) \u2014 A group of 19 Australian women and children linked to the Islamic State group have booked flights to return from Syria and some could face charges, Australia\u2019s government said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The seven women and 12 children were expected to arrive on flights to Sydney and Melbourne on Tuesday, less than three weeks after a group of 13 people in similar situations returned to Australia\u2019s two largest cities.<\/p>\n
Three of the four women<\/a> on the earlier flights were charged with slavery and terrorism offenses and remain behind bars.<\/p>\n Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said anyone among the 19 on their way to Australia who has committed crimes \u201ccan expect to face the full force of the law<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe government has not and will not provide any assistance to this group,\u201d Burke said in a statement.<\/p>\n \u201cThese are people who have made the horrific choice to join a dangerous terrorist organisation and to place their children in an unspeakable situation,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Australian law enforcement and intelligence agencies have been preparing for their return since 2014 and have long-standing plans in place to manage and monitor them, Burke said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe priority of the government, as always, is the safety of the Australian community,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n After the departure of the latest group, at least two Australians will remain in Roj camp<\/a>, a location in northeast Syria near the Iraq border where people linked to IS have been held since IS forces in the Middle East were defeated in 2019.<\/p>\n A mother who was prevented from returning to Australia in February by a temporary exclusion order was not traveling with the group. <\/p>\n The government revealed earlier that one of the women at Roj was subject to an order that can be used to prevent high-risk citizens from returning for up to two years.<\/p>\n Exclusion orders were created by laws introduced in 2019 to prevent defeated IS fighters from returning to Australia.<\/p>\n The last Australian cohort<\/a> returned from Syria on May 7, similarly without government help.<\/p>\n Kawsar Ahmed, also known Kawsar Abbas, 53, and her daughter Zeinab Ahmed, 31, were arrested when they landed in Melbourne over allegations that their family had bought a female Yazidi slave. <\/p>\n Janai Safar, 32, was arrested at Sydney Airport when she arrived with her 9-year-old son on charges of being a member of a terrorist organization and with entering or remaining in a region<\/a> controlled by a terrorist organization. <\/p>\n