Trending Now - Melbourne Woman Faces Charges for Alleged ISIS Links in Syria

WHO:

AP News - Australia Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Hilda Sirec stated that all the women who returned from Syria this month remained under police investigation.

AP News - Rayann El Houli, 34, is an Australian mother of four charged with traveling to Syria and joining the Islamic State group.

AP News - Janai Safar, 32, of Sydney, was charged with similar offenses upon her return to Australia on May 7.

ABC News World - An Australian woman has been charged.

BBC News - Several groups of women and children have returned from a Syrian camp.

WHAT:

AP News - El Houli was arrested at her Melbourne home two days after seven women and 12 children linked to IS returned to Australia from a Syrian refugee camp.

AP News - Three weeks prior to El Houli's arrest, four women and nine children returned from the same Roj camp for displaced people.

AP News - El Houli was arrested eight months after returning to Australia on September 26.

AP News - El Houli faces charges of entering and remaining in a declared conflict zone and joining a terrorist organization, each carrying a potential maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

AP News - Three of the four women who returned from the Roj camp were charged with slavery and terrorism offenses.

ABC News World - The woman is accused of traveling to Syria and joining the Islamic State group.

WHERE:

ABC News World - The woman is from Melbourne, Australia.

BBC News - The women and children returned from a Syrian camp.

WHEN:

AP News - El Houli's bail application is scheduled to be heard on Monday.

AP News - The mother of Kawsar Ahmed has a bail hearing scheduled for June 16.

WHY:

AP News - El Houli's lawyer, Peter Morrissey, emphasized the priority of returning her to her children, who are doing well in school and sports programs.

ABC News World - The charges are related to her alleged involvement with the Islamic State group.

HOW:

AP News - Police allege El Houli traveled to Syria between 2013 and 2014 to join IS.

AP News - El Houli was captured with her family by Kurdish forces in March 2019 and placed in al-Hol camp for displaced people.

ABC News World - The woman allegedly traveled to Syria to join the Islamic State.

(UPDATED May 28, 2026 23:22 UTC)

Australia Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Hilda Sirec has confirmed that all the women who returned from Syria this month are under police investigation, including El Houli, who was arrested at her Melbourne home shortly after seven women and twelve children linked to IS returned from a Syrian refugee camp. Three weeks before El Houli's arrest, four women and nine children also returned from the same camp, and her bail application is set to be heard on Monday. El Houli's lawyer, Peter Morrissey, has highlighted the importance of reuniting her with her children, who are reportedly thriving in school and sports programs, while police allege she traveled to Syria to join IS between 2013 and 2014.

(UPDATED May 28, 2026 14:16 UTC)

Rayann El Houli, a 34-year-old Australian mother of four, has been charged with traveling to Syria and joining the Islamic State group, following her arrest eight months after returning to Australia on September 26. She faces serious charges, including entering and remaining in a declared conflict zone and joining a terrorist organization, each carrying a potential maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. El Houli's bail application is set to be heard on Monday, while another woman, Janai Safar, who was charged with similar offenses upon her return to Australia on May 7, has a bail hearing scheduled for June 16.

(UPDATED May 28, 2026 08:19 UTC)

An Australian woman from Melbourne has been charged with traveling to Syria and allegedly joining the Islamic State group. In a related development, several groups of women and children have returned from a Syrian camp. The charges against the woman stem from her suspected involvement with the Islamic State.