When Australia decided to repatriate women and children from Syrian camps linked to the Islamic State (ISIS), the government presented it as an exercise in national responsibility, carefully managed and security led. But ISIS was no ordinary insurgency, it was a death cult, broadcasting beheadings of Western hostages and glorifying mass casualty terrorism. To welcome back its adherents, along with children born and raised in that ideological furnace, is to take a calculated risk that ordinary Australians should not be willing to accept.

That risk is far from hypothetical. The father and son who carried out the Bondi Hanukah terrorist attack in December were inspired by ISIS ideology. The ISIS flag was allegedly found in their vehicle after the attack. Any rhetoric from Albanese’s government that the ISIS brides will be “monitored” is futile. The son who carried out the Bondi attack was already on ASIO’s watchlist. What use was that? Bluntly: the ISIS brides, who demonstrate how un-Australian they are, should never be allowed to return. No assurances or political messaging can guarantee that Australia will not see another ISIS inspired attack. For ordinary Australians, the grass is not greener with such individuals on our soil. Performative virtue signaling serves no national security purpose, it only erodes public trust.

Sydney GP Jamal Rifi, a supporter of Albanese who also campaigned for Tony Burke in the last federal election, has been involved overseas in supporting aspects of the repatriation effort. Advocates say involving respected Muslim community figures demonstrates practical cooperation focused on deradicalization and reintegration. Critics, however, argue it........

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