A decade after Islamic State's rule fractured lives across Syria, its consequences have arrived in Australian courtrooms. Three women — a mother and daughter from Melbourne, and a third from Sydney — now face charges that include enslavement and crimes against humanity, offences so novel in Australian law that the attorney general's personal consent was required to bring them. At the centre of it all is the testimony of a woman who was held captive, her experience now the foundation of a prosecution that asks what accountability looks like when atrocity travels home.
Australian mother and daughter remanded over IS-era slavery charges in Syria
An enslaved woman was held captive by the defendants in Syria; her testimony is central to the prosecution case.
An enslaved woman's testimony now anchors a prosecution in Melbourne.
Mark
Why does the court describe these as "unusual charges"? What makes them different from standard criminal cases?
Mimi
Because slavery prosecutions under crimes against humanity law are rare in Australian courts. The attorney general had to sign off on them. We're not talking about theft or assault—we're talking about the systematic holding of another person as property, which requires a different legal framework entirely.
Mark
The mother allegedly paid ten thousand dollars for an enslaved woman. How does that transaction even happen? Who was the seller?
Mimi
The source doesn't say. We know the allegation exists and that police believe Kawsar Ahmad was complicit in it, but the mechanics of the transaction—who facilitated it, how it was arranged—that's part of what the court will examine. The enslaved woman's testimony will likely shed light on that.
Mark
All three women have children. What happens to them while their mothers are in custody?
Mimi
The source mentions eight children arrived with the Ahmad women and that Safar arrived with her child. But it doesn't say who's caring for them now or what the custody arrangements are. That's a question the courts will have to address, separate from the criminal charges.
Mark
Why did these women go to Syria in the first place? Were they ideologically committed to Islamic State?
Mimi
The source doesn't explore their motivations. Kawsar travelled with her husband; Zeinab with her mother. Safar travelled to join her husband who had already gone. But whether they were true believers, whether they were coerced, whether they understood what they were walking into—those are questions the trial will have to answer.
Mark
Operation Kurrajong has been running since 2015. How many people has it investigated?
Mimi
The source doesn't give a number. It just says the operation was formalised to track Australians who travelled to conflict zones and that the investigation into these three women is ongoing. But we don't know the scale—whether this is one case among dozens or among hundreds.
Mark
The maximum sentence for enslavement is twenty-five years. Do you think they'll serve that long?
Mimi
That's unknowable from here. It depends on what the evidence shows, what a jury decides, what a judge determines is appropriate. The maximum exists, but sentencing is always particular to the case.
Le Pouls
- Two women allegedly kept an enslaved person in their home in IS-controlled Syria and purchased another for $10,000 — charges described in court as 'unusual' and carrying maximum sentences of 25 years each.
- A third woman faces up to ten years on each of two counts after allegedly travelling to Syria in 2015 to join her husband, who had already left Australia to join Islamic State.
- The attorney general had to personally consent to the enslavement charges being laid, signalling both the legal novelty and the gravity of what Australian courts are now being asked to adjudicate.
- An enslaved woman's own testimony sits at the heart of the prosecution — her account of captivity inside the defendants' household is described by authorities as central to the case.
- All three women remain in custody; bail hearings are pending, and Operation Kurrajong — the counter-terrorism effort tracking Australians in Middle East conflict zones since 2015 — shows no sign of concluding with these arrests.
A decade after Islamic State's rule fractured lives across Syria, its consequences have arrived in Australian courtrooms. Three women — a mother and daughter from Melbourne, and a third from Sydney — now face charges that include enslavement and crimes against humanity, offences so novel in Australian law that the attorney general's personal consent was required to bring them. At the centre of it all is the testimony of a woman who was held captive, her experience now the foundation of a prosecution that asks what accountability looks like when atrocity travels home.
Three Australian women were taken into custody this week facing charges that push the boundaries of what Australian courts have prosecuted before. Kawsar Ahmad, fifty-three, and her daughter Zeinab Ahmad, thirty-one, were arrested at Melbourne airport by counter-terrorism officers. A third woman, Janai Safar, thirty-two, was separately detained in Sydney. The charges span crimes against humanity, enslavement, and involvement with a terrorist organisation during Islamic State's control of parts of Syria.
Federal police allege that Kawsar and Zeinab Ahmad travelled to Syria in 2014 and knowingly held an enslaved woman in their home. Kawsar is further alleged to have been complicit in purchasing a second enslaved woman for ten thousand dollars. These charges rest not on abstraction but on the testimony of the woman who was held — her account of captivity inside their household is described as central to the prosecution.
When the two women appeared before Chief Magistrate Lisa Hannan, the charges were described as 'unusual' — an understatement that reflects their novelty within Australian law. The attorney general was required to personally consent before the charges could be laid at all. Neither woman entered a plea; both were remanded in custody ahead of a bail hearing where a summary of the 'significant' allegations, including details from the enslaved woman's testimony, will be presented.
Janai Safar's case runs on a separate track. She is charged with entering a declared conflict zone and joining a terrorist organisation after allegedly travelling to Syria in 2015 to be with her husband, who had already joined Islamic State. She arrived in Sydney with her child and faces up to ten years on each count. Her lawyers have requested an urgent psychological report before any bail application is made.
The arrests form part of Operation Kurrajong, a counter-terrorism effort launched in 2015 to track Australians who travelled to Middle East conflict zones. The AFP's assistant commissioner for counter-terrorism made clear this is not an isolated reckoning — the operation is ongoing, and those alleged to have committed offences will be brought before the courts. Eight children arrived in Australia alongside Kawsar and Zeinab Ahmad. All three women remain in custody as their bail applications approach.
Three Australian women arrived back on home soil this week facing charges that stretch the boundaries of what Australian courts have prosecuted before. Kawsar Ahmad, fifty-three, and her daughter Zeinab Ahmad, thirty-one, were taken into custody at Melbourne airport on Thursday by officers from the Victorian joint counter-terrorism team. A third woman, Janai Safar, thirty-two, was separately arrested in Sydney. The charges they face are stark: crimes against humanity, enslavement, and involvement with a terrorist organisation during the years when Islamic State controlled parts of Syria.
The allegations paint a picture of deliberate participation in slavery. Federal police say Kawsar and Zeinab Ahmad travelled to Syria in 2014 with their family and knowingly held an enslaved woman in their home. Police further allege that Kawsar, who had travelled with her husband, was complicit in purchasing another enslaved woman for ten thousand dollars. These are not abstract charges. They rest on the testimony of an actual person—the woman who was held—and on witness accounts of what occurred inside their household.
When the two women appeared before Chief Magistrate Lisa Hannan on Friday, the court heard these described as "unusual charges." That understatement carries weight. The attorney general had to consent to the charges being laid at all, a procedural gate that signals their seriousness and novelty within Australian law. The enslavement offences each carry a maximum sentence of twenty-five years. Neither woman was asked to enter a plea. They were remanded in custody, with a bail hearing scheduled for Monday. A summary of the allegations—described by the court as "significant"—will be presented then, including details drawn from the enslaved woman's own account.
Janai Safar's case follows a different trajectory but shares the same gravity. She is charged with entering a declared conflict zone and joining a terrorist organisation. Police allege she travelled to Syria in 2015 to be with her husband, who had already left Australia to join Islamic State. She arrived in Sydney on Thursday night with her child. She faces up to ten years on each count. Her lawyers have requested an urgent psychological report before making a bail application, signalling they anticipate a difficult hearing.
The arrests are part of Operation Kurrajong, a formalised counter-terrorism effort that began in 2015 to track and investigate Australians who travelled to conflict zones in the Middle East. Stephen Nutt, the AFP's assistant commissioner for counter-terrorism, described the operation as methodical and ongoing. "Australian joint counter-terrorism teams will ensure those who are alleged to have committed a criminal offence are put before the courts," he said. The implication is clear: this is not an isolated case but part of a sustained reckoning with the return of Australians who were present during Islamic State's rule.
The human dimension sits at the centre of these charges. An enslaved woman's testimony is now the foundation of a prosecution against two Australian citizens in a Melbourne courtroom. Eight children arrived with Kawsar and Zeinab Ahmad. Kawsar's eldest daughter, thirty-three-year-old Zahra Ahmad, was not arrested or charged. The family structure, the children, the woman held in captivity—these are the threads that will be pulled in court over the coming weeks. All three women remain in custody. The bail applications will determine whether they are released pending trial or held until their cases are resolved.
Citations marquantes
Australian joint counter-terrorism teams will ensure those who are alleged to have committed a criminal offence are put before the courts.— Stephen Nutt, AFP assistant commissioner for counter-terrorism
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