The ISIS girlfriend who was returned to Australia hides her face as she faces court accused of having voluntarily entered Syria to join her husband as he fought for the terror group.
- ISIS girlfriend faces charges in New South Wales court
- Mariam Raad, 31, faces 10 years in jail
- She is accused of knowingly entering Syria
Mariam Raad appeared in court in person on Wednesday for the first time since she was accused of knowingly entering Islamic State territory in 2014 to meet the father of her four children, veteran Islamic State fighter Muhammad Zahab.
The 31-year-old appeared in the Local Youth Court, where her case was adjourned to give prosecutors more time to collect “outstanding” evidence, including financial records and messages sent by mobile devices while in Syria.
Ms Raad has been living in the NSW regional town since being brought back to Australia in October last year from a displaced persons camp in north-east Syria, where she had been living for around three years.
She was rescued from dire conditions in the Al Roj camp near the Iraqi border, along with three other women and 13 children whose family members are missing or dead Islamic State members.
Ms Raad faces up to 10 years behind bars after she was arrested in Young in January and charged with entering a part of Syria under the control of Islamic State, in violation of federal law.
Mariam Raad (pictured with one of her brothers) has been living in the NSW regional town since being brought back to Australia in October last year from a displaced persons camp in north-east Syria where he had been living for about three years.
Ms Raad (pictured outside court) faces up to 10 years behind bars after she was arrested in Young in January and charged with entering a part of Syria under Islamic State control, in violation of federal law .
He was forced to hand over his passport as he was granted conditional bail at Griffith Local Court following his arrest, appearing in custody at Wagga Wagga.
Police will try to prove in court that Raad traveled to the conflict region to join her husband, a former maths teacher turned star recruiter for Islamic State who left Australia in 2013 and is believed to have died in 2018.
The police, who began their investigation into Ms. Raad while she was still in Syria, allege that she was aware of her husband’s involvement in Islamic State.
Ms Raad arrived at court on Wednesday morning wearing a brown hijab, large sunglasses and a disposable mask that hid most of her face.
She sat quietly during the brief hearing accompanied by one of her brothers as the couple watched their attorney and the prosecution’s attorney appear via video link.
The court heard that Ms Raad’s lawyers want the case transferred to the Goulburn Local Court to make it easier for them to attend in person and to exempt Ms Raad from appearing at the next hearing.
The magistrate granted Ms. Raad’s request not to appear at her next court hearing, as well as an eight-week adjournment requested by the prosecution’s lawyers.
But he said the attorney general would have to approve the transfer of the case to another court to reassure legal professionals.
Ms Raad said nothing to reporters who ran to her as she left the field and got into a 4×4 parked in front of the building before her brother took her away.
The case is due back in court on May 10.