Australian nurse suspected of helping 'IS'
July 25, 2015
Police detained 39-year-old Adam Brookman at Sydney Airport after he flew in from Turkey under police escort, officials said Saturday. Brookman surrendered to Turkish officials earlier this week.
"His travel back to Australia was negotiated between the individual, the Australian Federal Police, Victoria Police, other Commonwealth government agencies and international partners," police announced in a statement.
Brookman now faces criminal charges for allegedly doing guard duty and conducting reconnaissance for the "Islamic State" (IS) group during his time in Syria.
After his arrest, Brookman appeared in front of Parramatta Local Court via video link from his police cell. According to a report by The Sydney Morning Herald, he is expected to appear in front of a Melbourne court on Monday and to be charged with providing support to a terrorist organization. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 25 years.
Wrong side of war
Brookman, a convert to Islam, told journalists earlier that he had gone to Syria on a humanitarian mission. He claims he had been injured in an airstrike and taken to an IS-controlled hospital.
"After I recovered, they wouldn't let me leave," he told Fairfax Media.
Brookman also claims that he is innocent of any crime, and that he opposed IS's violence - including the beheading of the group's captives.
He won the militants' trust by working as a medic and was able to escape to Turkey in December, he said.
The Australian government estimates that some 120 Australians have left to fight in Iraq or Syria. The government also estimates that another 160 actively support extremist organizations within Australia's borders.
Although dozens of Australians suspected of fighting in the Middle East had returned home before Brookman, none of them has been charged, because of a lack of proof.
dj/mkg (AP, dpa, Reuters, AFP)