Australia rescues children of dead Islamic State fighters from Syria

SYDNEY, June 24 (Reuters) - Australia has rescued the children and grandchildren of two dead Islamic State fighters from a Syrian refugee camp and will resettle them in the country, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Monday.

In the first such rescue by the Western country, Morrison confirmed media reports that eight children were taken from a camp in northern Syria on Sunday and the government was working on repatriating them.

"The opportunity now is for these young children who are coming back to Australia," Morrison told reporters in the western city of Perth. "They can't be held responsible for the crimes of their parents."

Aged between two and 18, those rescued include the three surviving children of notorious Isis fighter Kahled Sharrouf, photographed standing next to his young son holding a severed human head in a picture that made global headlines in 2014.

The two daughters of his pregnant daughter, Zaynab Sharrouf, and the three offspring of slain fighter Yasin Rizvic were also rescued, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation said.

An Australian government spokesman declined to comment further or confirm the children's identities to Reuters.

"They have got off to a horrible start in life as a result of the appalling decisions of their parents, and they'll find their home in Australia and I'm sure they'll be embraced by Australians," Morrison said.

The children would stay in a safe location in Iraq until Zaynab Sharrouf gives birth and officials will run medical and psychological checks on the children, the Australian newspaper said.

Once in Australia, the Sharrouf children will be released into the custody of their grandmother while the Rizvic children resettle in Melbourne, it added.

Belgium, Germany and the United States have made similar moves to rescue small numbers of orphaned children in Syrian camps, though security concerns have deterred other governments, including Britain, from doing so. in northeast Syria have urged Western countries to take back citizens recruited by Islamic State and their relatives.

On Monday, the U.N. human rights chief urged nations to "assume responsibility for their nationals" and not inflict statelessness on fighters' children. least 50 more Australian children and women remain in the camps in northeast Syria, many sick and injured, Paul Ronalds, chief executive of Save the Children, a charity working in several Syrian camps, said in a statement.

Morrison said there was no blanket policy about Australia's repatriation of children stranded in Syria.

"Every single case is assessed on its merits. There are a range of processes one has to go through. Most significantly, the whole issue of identity."

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