UN HUMAN rights experts have urged the Turkish and Irish governments to “ensure the safety and security” of Lisa Smith and her child.
They were transferred to Turkish custody after the bombing of the Ain Issa displacement camp in northeast Syria in recent weeks.
The 38-year-old is expected to be arrested by detectives as soon as she steps foot on Irish soil later this month.
The exact whereabouts of the mother and child are unknown.
The UN experts are concerned that Smith will face “ill-treatment” in custody and strongly recommend she is given consular assistance in Turkey.
They have “grave concerns” about the health of the pair and urge that she and her daughter are protected from abuse while they are detained.
The UN offered support in the “human rights-compliant return and reintegration” of Ms Smith.
DAUGHTER CONCERNS
They said: “The vulnerability of this infant is particularly worrying and there is a compelling obligation to protect her well-being in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child to which Turkey and Ireland are both parties.”
The UN representatives want the basis for their detention to be clarified, that access to adequate legal counsel be provided, and any interrogations to be carried out conforming with Turkey’s treaty obligations.
They stress the need to recognise that women and children associated with ISIS may have been subjected to serious human rights violations and gender-based violence during and prior to their detention in camps such as Ain Issa.
They say that individuals should be held accountable to any violations of national and international law as appropriate with the available evidence.
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This comes as Tanaiste Simon Coveney told the Dail that Irish Defence Force personnel were not sent to Turkey to extract Smith and her daughter.
Gardai have almost completed a file they have prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions on the IS sympathiser and former Defence Forces member.
Smith will either be interviewed voluntarily or arrested for questioning depending on her level of cooperation.