No Face-to-Face Checks Planned for 34 in Syrian Camp, Burke Says

The minister said the government had a good grasp of the cohort’s information, thus eliminating the need for further face-to-face interviews.

Australian families affiliated with ISIS walk along a path before departure inside the Roj camp in al Malikiyah, Syria, on Feb. 15, 2026.Amjad Kurdo/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has confirmed that the Labor government will not conduct in person interviews with the 34 Australians held in a Syrian detention camp.

During an interview with ABC Insiders on Feb. 22, Burke rejected the idea that there an information gap, saying that Australian authorities were on the ground in 2022 during earlier repatriations and that federal agencies have continued monitoring the individuals in the camp since.