ISIS fights for passports

ISLAMIC State sympathisers in Australia are fighting ASIO in the courts over the cancellation of their visas and citizenship.

A Melbourne university student, a Toowoomba office worker, a Sydney Catholic Church goer and a man found to have provided logistic support to a 9/11 US terror attack affiliate are among those challenging having their visas torn up in the Administrative Ap

An Islamic State fighter.

peals Tribunal for terror-related links or actions.

Their cases would not normally be publicly known as they are quietly removed from Australia but some are now fighting ASIO’S “adverse security assessments” to gain an Australian passport, which ASIO says has become valuable “when sold to fund other politically motivated activities”.

ASIO has had to hold some of the hearings and “classified evidence” in secret, and use the Crimes Act to allow ASIO operatives to use assumed identities to provide expert evidence to the courts.

The domestic spy group cites the caseload of cancelled visas as evidence of the continued desire of those with direct terrorist affiliations or support for extremist ideologies to set up here.

ASIO would not comment on its cases but confirmed “a small number” of visa-related adverse security assessments had been made on counter terrorism grounds. It declined to say how many.

It is however known that ASIO provided more than 11,000 general security assessments to the Department of

Home Affairs in the past financial year to decide on whether to issue visas and citizenship.

In one case this year, a Lebanese man married to an Australian citizen and on a partner visa was assessed by ASIO to be a direct/indirect risk to the nation’s security.

In some cases on legal technicalities ISIS suspects or supporters are winning the right to remain in Australia while others, like terror bride Zehra Duman, are fighting to return.

ASIO warned of the dangers of Facebook used to promote or incite extremists views and actions and refuted suggestions that Islamic State’s battlefield losses meant it was less significant.

“ISIL has become much more than a military force in countries such as Iraq and Syria,” an ASIO source said. “It has extended its reach by means of attacks … in Australia and elsewhere and by remaining a source of inspiration for those who would carry out those attacks in its name.”