Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott (L) and New Zealand Prime Minister John Key speak during a joint news conference on Abbott's first official two-day visit, in Auckland
IN PHOTO: Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott (L) and New Zealand Prime Minister John Key speak during a joint news conference on Abbott's first official two-day visit, in Auckland February 28, 2015. Reuters/David Rowland

A New Zealander in Syria who wants to return to Australia may end up in jail but he cannot be stopped coming back to New Zealand. The woman in Syria, who holds a dual New Zealand and Australian citizenship, is welcome to return to New Zealand, according to the country’s Prime Minister John Key.

The woman had travelled to Syria in 2014 for humanitarian reasons and is now desperate to return to Australia, reports TVNZ. However, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has reiterated that anyone who came from the terror hotspots in the Middle East will be going to jail if they go back to Australia.

Mr. Key said if the woman wants to go to New Zealand, the government can’t strip her of her citizenship but if she is involved in something else, the Foreign Fighters Legislation may cover her. The unnamed woman is believed to have lived in Sydney and married an Australian.

Her case is similar to several others who are also negotiating their return to Australia. The country has taken a hard line on such cases as Mr. Abbott is expected to move to amend the law to prevent dual nationals to be stripped of Australian citizenship if they were involved in terrorist activities, reports New Zealand Herald.

Mr. Key said if Mr. Abbott would take that step, New Zealand will unlikely follow. “Obviously, that’s not our preference but we can’t stop what Australia chooses to do. We can only reflect on whether we believe it is appropriate to leave a New Zealand citizen in a stateless position and I think the view we’ve taken is we don’t support that,” said the New Zealand prime minister.

He added that authorities are in contact with their Australian counterparts but more information about the women is yet to be released. Mr. Key said there was a question about whether the law should be expanded and considered part of a major review of security laws.

The foreign fighters legislation passed in New Zealand in 2014 has allowed the confiscation of passports for up to three years to stop people from travelling abroad to join ISIS militants. The law also gave spy agencies the power to monitor individuals suspected of engaging in terrorism.

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