A Yazidi woman enslaved as a child by ISIS fighters prepares to testify via video link from Iraq against two Australian women charged with slavery and crimes against humanity.
Witness’s Harrowing Ordeal
The unidentified witness, captured in 2014 at a young pre-teen age, endured five years of brutality after ISIS militants seized her from her home. Authorities confirm she was sold into slavery to ISIS families across Iraq and Syria, living in constant fear until her eventual release and reunion with her family. She remains deeply traumatized by the experience.
Thousands of Yazidis faced similar horrors when ISIS targeted their communities in Sinjar and nearby areas, forcing young women into sexual slavery and leaving mass graves in their wake.
Charges Against the Accused
Kawsar Abbas, 53, a grandmother, faces charges of enslavement, possessing a slave, using a slave, and slave trading, each carrying a potential 25-year sentence. Court documents detail her alleged actions in Syrian locations including Mayadin, Hajin, Gharanji, Bahra, Abu Hamam, and Walaa in Deir ez-Zor province from June 2017 to November 2018.
Investigators state Abbas traveled to the region with her husband and children in 2014, complicit in purchasing a female slave for $10,000 and holding her in her home.
Her daughter, Zeinab Ahmad, 31, faces enslavement and using a slave charges over the same period, with allegations she knowingly kept a female slave in her Syrian residence.
The conduct forms part of a widespread attack on civilians, according to charge sheets.
Court Proceedings and Detention
Abbas and Ahmad appeared via video from Melbourne’s maximum-security Dame Phyllis Frost Centre during a hearing at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court. Victorian Chief Magistrate Lisa Hannan approved the prosecution’s request for the witness to testify remotely, despite typical in-person requirements for non-victims.
The women, detained by Kurdish forces in 2019 and held in the Al Roj camp, recently returned to Australia amid chaotic scenes. They remain in custody pending a bail application next month.
Related Cases
Zeinab’s sister, Zahra Ahmad, 33, returned with the group but faces no charges and was released. Abbas is represented by barrister Peter Morrissey, SC, known for defending Bali Nine members. Ahmad’s counsel, Grace Morgan, will handle the initial bail bid.
Separately, Janai Safar, 32, another returnee, faces charges of entering a prohibited area and terrorist organization membership. She remains in custody awaiting a July 15 court date in Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court.
