The West Australian exclusiveISIS brides: Leading Muslim Sydney doctor Jamal Rifi believed to be in Syria coordinating returnAndrew GreeneThe NightlyTue, 17 February 2026 6:23AMCommentsCommentsEmail Andrew Greene
Security officials believe a prominent and well-respected figure in Sydney’s Muslim community is coordinating the latest repatriation of so-called ISIS brides from Syria to Australia.
The Nightly has been told Doctor Jamal Rifi, who in 2024 praised Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke for doing a “great deal” for the community in his Western Sydney electorate, has travelled to the Middle East after arranging passports for the Australian families.
On Monday, photos emerged of several women and children preparing to leave a detention camp in northeast Syria for the capital Damascus, but the group of 34 was later stopped by local authorities and turned around.
It’s understood Minister Burke is considering possible exclusion orders for two members of the group, which would prevent them from returning to Australia.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday denied that his government was assisting the group of women and children get back home, saying it would not be involved in any repatriation efforts.
“My mother would have said, ‘If you make your bed, you lie in it’,” he told ABC Television.
“These are people who went overseas supporting Islamic State and went there to provide support for people who basically want a caliphate.”
A senior security official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, claimed Dr Rifi had recently led community fundraising efforts to help bring the women and children back to Australia and had now taken their newly issued passports to Damascus.
Dr Rifi has so far not responded to questions from the Nightly, but a colleague at his medical practice in the Sydney suburb of Belmore confirmed the community leader was “currently overseas”.
Earlier the Albanese government would not confirm if the group had been issued with Australian passports, but a spokesperson insisted it “is not and will not repatriate people from Syria.”
“Our security agencies have been monitoring – and continue to monitor – the situation in Syria to ensure they are prepared for any Australians seeking to return to Australia,” the spokesperson told The Nightly on Monday evening.
In September last year another cohort of ISIS linked families, consisting of two women and four children, arrived in Australia from Lebanon, with the Department of Home Affairs stating they had known about their plans since June.
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