CANBERRA — The Australian government has signaled that a former Perth paediatrician who traveled to the Middle East to join the Islamic State group should remain in an Iraqi prison, following reports that he is alive despite long-standing assumptions of his death.
According to reporting circulating internationally, Tareq Kamleh left his medical career in Western Australia in 2015 to align with the militant organization in Syria. For several years, security analysts and officials had presumed he was killed during the subsequent military campaigns against the group.
However, recent accounts monitored by reporters around the world indicate that the former medical practitioner is currently detained in an Iraqi facility. The revelation has prompted a firm response from Canberra regarding his potential return.
An Australian minister has publicly dismissed the prospect of government intervention, stating that the former doctor should be left to serve his time in the Iraqi justice system. The official stance emphasizes that citizens who chose to join foreign extremist organizations must face the legal consequences of those actions abroad.
Prior to his departure, the paediatrician had worked at multiple medical facilities in Australia. His transition from a medical professional to a prominent figure in extremist propaganda campaigns had previously drawn significant concern from domestic security agencies.
