Australian reporting based on Iraqi court documents placed Kamleh in custody in Baghdad. A June statement from Iraq's Supreme Court said an investigation remained active and alleged that his role went beyond providing medical care. Authorities accused him of adopting and promoting the group's ideology, including encouraging terrorist activity outside conflict zones. The allegations have not yet produced a final judgment in the evidence supplied.
Kamleh left Australia in April 2015. Before his departure, members of a mosque he attended said he told people he intended to work with Doctors Without Borders. He later appeared in an Islamic State recruitment video calling on Western medical professionals to join him, and in another recording was shown carrying a rifle and urging support for the organization.
The Iraqi account reportedly says he survived Raqqa, moved through IS territory as a mobile field doctor and remained with members of the group as it retreated. He was arrested or surrendered to the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in March 2019, then transferred with other foreign fighters into Iraq's justice system. Iraqi investigators are assessing whether detainees who claim non-combatant roles engaged in wider activity.
Australia's federal police have charged Kamleh with terrorism offences, including joining and recruiting for Islamic State, and hold a warrant for his arrest. Opposition Leader Angus Taylor urged the government to prevent him returning by denying travel documents or imposing a temporary exclusion order. Such an order can delay an Australian citizen's arrival so security agencies can prepare, but cannot permanently remove a citizen's right to return.
Housing Minister Clare O'Neil said the government did not want Kamleh back. A government spokesperson said Australia would provide no assistance to citizens who chose to join a terrorist organization and warned that some returnees would face the full force of the law. Officials had not independently confirmed his status publicly in the supplied account.
Iraqi authorities said any repatriation or surrender of foreign nationals would be considered individually through official judicial and diplomatic channels. For now, Kamleh remains the subject of an Iraqi investigation, while outstanding Australian charges mean that release from custody would not resolve his legal exposure.
Kamleh was reportedly one of 13 Australian men with Islamic State links held in Iraq who might seek repatriation if released. Iraqi authorities said foreign-national cases would be handled individually through mutual legal-assistance requests and coordination with courts and diplomatic bodies, rather than through an automatic group process.
