Children in camp too

Court hears case on return of IS supporter

On Friday, the Federal Administrative Court heard a case concerning the return of an IS supporter from Salzburg and her two children. The Austrian Foreign Ministry had previously refused to allow them to return from a detention camp in a Kurdish-controlled part of northern Syria (see video above).

This decision was "unlawful, especially for G's two sons", said lawyer Doris Hawelka. Maria G. traveled from Salzburg to Turkey on 28 June 2014. She was only 17 years old at the time. The journey took G. on to Syria, where she joined the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS). She gave birth to two children there. Five years ago, she was finally captured during fighting against IS and has been in a camp since September 2020.

Ministry: Departure was voluntary
Applications to the Foreign Ministry for repatriation under the Consular Act and for a return permit were rejected last year. The Federal Administrative Court intervened and the decision was legally challenged. On Friday, the Foreign Ministry argued that G. had left the country voluntarily despite the travel warning. It also argued that repatriation was not the ministry's task at all and that Syria was dangerous for the authorities' staff due to the highest travel warning level.

A representative said in court that the Foreign Ministry could help with the evacuation of the children. This failed because G. did not want to be separated from her sons. Between 2019 and 2022, four children have already been returned to Austria from camps in northern Syria via Iraq. In one case, the mother was dead; in the second, the mother remained behind in the detention camp.

Parents: G. received psychological support for years
On Friday, the parents of the IS supporter were questioned as witnesses. They would communicate sporadically with their daughter via audio messages on WhatsApp, most recently about three weeks ago. Maria G. had had a difficult childhood, she had been severely traumatized as a 12-year-old by an accident in an amusement park and had subsequently received psychological care for years.

She then met a migrant from Somalia through a family therapist and came into contact with Islam. In December 2013, the then teenager converted. According to her parents, she occasionally went to mosques in Salzburg.

Worried about children
The conditions in the camp were difficult: a lack of medical care and a difficult situation for her two young sons. "My impression of her was that she seemed very intimidated and a little desperate," said political scientist Thomas Schmidinger about an encounter in 2022. She was worried that her children would be brutalized in the camp and would not be able to attend school. The woman therefore wanted to return to Austria, even if she was threatened with criminal proceedings for membership of a terrorist organization. The conditions were already similar to imprisonment anyway, but there was no end in sight.

My impression of her was that she seemed very intimidated and a little desperate.

Politikwissenschaftler Thomas Schmidinger

There was enough political will for her to be repatriated. For example, US troops on the ground would offer their help to other countries. However, an official request from the Austrian Foreign Ministry is necessary.

No decision was made on the repatriation of the Salzburg IS supporter on Friday; this is to take place in the coming weeks.