MELBOURNE, Australia
Australian nationals have been banned from traveling to Mosul in northern Iraq, making it the second city under the control of Daesh to be declared a no-go zone, local media reported.
In a statement released Monday, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said: “This means it will be an offence under Australian law to enter, or remain in, Mosul district without a legitimate purpose.”
Daesh, the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, seized control of Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, in June last year.
The decision comes three months after the government drew on tough new counter-terrorism powers to proclaim Syria’s Raqqa province, a Daesh stronghold where Australian fighters are thought to be concentrated, forbidden to its nationals without a “legitimate purpose” for being there.
Entering or remaining in the prohibited areas is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
"The government is determined to stop Australians joining the terrorist conflict in Iraq and Syria and supporting terrorist organizations," Bishop added.
She said Daesh had carried out “mass atrocities” in Mosul, including public beheadings, and destroyed “numerous historical and religious sites.”
“The Government is committed to working with community leaders to combat radicalization of vulnerable young men and women, to counter the hateful propaganda spread by Daesh,” The Australian newspaper quoted her as saying.
The announcement came after Daesh released a video last week showing militants destroying monuments, including 3,000-year-old sculptures, inside Mosul’s museum.
"It was reminiscent of the Taliban's destruction of ancient Buddhist statues in Afghanistan in 2001, eerily in that period up to the attacks on the World Trade Centre," Bishop said.
Last month, U.S. Central Command announced a planned offensive to retake Mosul with a U.S.-trained Iraqi and Kurdish force of up to 25,000.
Australia joined the U.S.-led military alliance against Daesh last October. The government has said around 90 Australians are fighting with militant groups in the Middle East and another 20 had been killed.
