Arabic version: هيومن رايتس ووتش تحذّر من خطر الإعدام الذي يواجه أستراليين في العراق

According to ABC News, Human Rights Watch has raised concerns for 13 Australians believed to be held in Iraqi jails on suspicion of links to the Islamic State group. The organisation said the men could face inhumane treatment, unfair prosecutions and potential execution. The Australian government declined to comment on the individuals’ circumstances for legal and security reasons.

The 13 Australians were among almost 5,700 men and boys transferred from Syria to Iraq by the United States military earlier in 2026. Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council said in early September that it had completed interrogations of the men and would begin prosecutions. HRW accused the Albanese government of “outsourcing” its responsibilities, saying Australia had made no effort to repatriate the men despite calls from Iraq for countries to take back their nationals.

HRW senior counterterrorism adviser Letta Tayler told ABC News that, while conditions in Iraq were relatively better than in war-torn Syria, the detainees still faced “a real risk of unfair prosecution followed by execution”. She said Iraq had a substantial record of fair-trial violations, including apparent use of confessions extracted through torture, though Iraqi authorities had said they would follow international fair-trial standards.

Sources told HRW that several countries had asked Iraq to waive the death penalty for their nationals if convicted, but Tayler said there was no official commitment and no confirmation Australia was among those countries. Perth-born paediatrician Tareq Kamleh and Yusuf Zahab, who was taken from Australia to Syria by relatives when he was 12, are thought to be among the Australians held. Tayler said Australia was capable of assessing possible prosecutions through its domestic courts.