Families of Australians held in Syrian detention camps welcome ‘incredibly exciting’ news of planned repatriation

One man whose daughter and grandchildren are in the Roj camp says the government has not notified family members of rescue missions

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A lawyer for Australians trapped in Syrian detention camps say conditions are volatile and unsafe" inside the camps as winter approaches, with interruptions to food and water supply, and the need for their repatriation growing increasingly urgent.

Guardian Australia reported on Sunday that the government was preparing an operation to start repatriating more than 60 Australians - widows and children of slain or jailed Islamic State fighters - who are in the al-Hawl and Roj detention camps. About 20 are adults, many of whom say they were coerced or tricked into travelling to Syria by husbands who have since died.

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