Thread: Khaled Sharrouf, Australian terrorist, believed to have been killed in air strike

The Federal Government has received credible information that Australia's most infamous terrorist, Khaled Sharrouf, has been killed in an air strike in the Middle East along with two of his young sons, 7.30 has learned.

Sharrouf and his sons, Abdullah, 12 and Zarqawi, 11, are believed to have been killed by a coalition air strike while driving near Islamic State's de facto Syrian capital Raqqa on Friday, August 11, according to government officials speaking on condition of anonymity.

7.30 is also aware one of Sharrouf's brothers has confirmed the death to a small group of Australian extremists via a message which said his brother and nephews were killed by the US-led coalition.

Photos of Sharrouf's corpse and the corpses of his sons have been seen by members of Australia's extremist community, a law enforcement official speaking on condition of anonymity told 7.30.

Border Protection Minister Peter Dutton told a press conference this afternoon he could not confirm the deaths.

"It's always very difficult to confirm these reports, given that we're dealing with war zones in Syria and Iraq," he said.

"The point to make is that no Australian would mourn the loss of Khaled Sharrouf. He's a terrorist, he sought to harm Australians and, if he returned to our country, he would be a significant threat to the Australian public.

"Nobody would want to see Australian children die. Nobody would want to see any children die. But the fact is that Sharrouf and his wife took their children into a war zone. If they have been killed, what other outcome would they expect?"
Do you know more about this story? Email 7.30syd@your.xxx.xxx.xx

First time Australian children believed to have been killed
Khaled Sharrouf
Photo: Khaled Sharrouf went to Syria in 2013. (ABC News)

Sharrouf has long been the poster boy for the small cohort of Australians who travelled to Syria and Iraq to fight with Islamic State, and his death will be welcome news to the Australian Government.

However, the killing of Abdullah and Zarqawi — both are Australian citizens — will leave the Government open to difficult questions about how Australian children were caught up in the strike on Sharrouf.

This is the first-known time that Australian children are believed to have been killed by a Western air strike in the Syrian conflict, and serious questions will be asked about what role Australia played in the operation that led to their deaths.

Sharrouf, 36, from Sydney, fled Australia for Syria on the passport of one of his brothers in 2013.

His wife Tara followed him soon after, taking their five children with her.

Tara died of health complications in 2015, but the pair's children remained in Syria with their father.

Those children are: Zaynab, 15, Hoda, 14, Abdullah; Zarqawi, and Hamzah, six.

Since being in Syria, Zaynab has given birth to a child by Sharrouf's best friend Mohammad Elomar, who was killed in a 2015 air strike.

Sharrouf's three remaining children are now stuck in Raqqa, where local civilians live an increasingly dangerous existence, trapped between a US-backed offensive and the Islamic State, who are preventing anyone from leaving the besieged city.

Sharrouf was the first Australian to have his citizenship stripped earlier this year under new counter-terrorism legislation. He remained a citizen of Lebanon.
'Australian law get stuffed'
Khaled Sharrouf in an undated photograph.
Photo: Khaled Sharrouf in an undated photograph. (ABC News)

Sharrouf first came to public attention in 2005, when he was charged over the Operation Pendennis terrorist conspiracy.

Pendennis involved groups of men in Sydney and Melbourne gathering guns, ammunition and bomb-making equipment to use in terrorist attacks in both cities.

During his trial it was stated that Sharrouf had been diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic.

The court also heard of remarks he made about Australia, that were secretly recorded by police.

"Forget Australian law … Australian law get stuffed, finished … give us all back our passports and we leave," he said.

"I swear to God I'll be the first to get out of this stuffed-up country. Sons of dogs.

"I swear I'd rather be locked up and tortured and everything in a Muslim country rather than be locked up one day in this country."

He was a peripheral player and only served five years in jail.

In the years after his release it became clear he had not abandoned his commitment to militant Islam, and in 2012 was a participant in the Hyde Park riot that began as a protest against a YouTube video denigrating Islam's prophet, Mohammed.

Sharrouf moved to Syria the next year to join the war being waged by Islamic State against dictator Bashar al-Assaad.

In 2014, Sharrouf attained global notoriety when he published social media photographs of Abdullah, then aged nine, holding the severed head of a Syrian government soldier in Raqqa.

Even US secretary of state at the time, John Kerry, reacted to the photo.

"This image is really one of the most disturbing, stomach-turning, grotesque photographs ever displayed," he said.

Sharrouf returned to the public consciousness in May this year when a video emerged of his youngest son Humzah being coaxed by his off-screen father to simulate the killing of non-Muslims and Australians.

A week later police raided the home of one of Sharrouf's relatives following concerns the pair may have spoken about committing a terrorist act on Anzac Day.

Khaled Sharrouf, Australian terrorist, believed to have been killed in air strike in Syria - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)


Takes his kids to a war zone and gets them killed.

His name sure sounds Australian.

Good riddance to the Leb scum,pity they didn't get the half Cambodian-Figian OZ passport holder before he bolted to Turkey from Syria and jailed there.

Good Aussie stock this ballsy Aussie had, just like a modern day Ned Kelly he defied authority and has had the last laugh, because him and his sons have died as martyrs they are having a ball in heaven with more available heavenly virgins than what's currently available through the whole of Australia.

Good riddance to scum, but it is sad that Australian children, any children, have to be collateral damage.
As the OP article intimates, there should be an inquiry as to Australia's involvement in the murder of Australian children.
If it was a siege situation in Australia and children were involved, the entire operation to get the criminal would have the children in mind. Why not anywhere else?

Originally Posted by Eliminator

^ Because the so called father put his CHILDREN and also GUIDED them to do what he was doing, what part of this are you NOT grabbing? HE put his family in this situation by his OWN stupidity. HE put his whole family into stupid ideals that could only come out to a bad ending. I have NO sympathy for him. I do think that it is so sad that some stupid religious nutcases feels no remorse in letting their CHILDREN die for HIS own STUPIDITY.

Islam itself is like all other religions in the world, CONTROL the MASSES. The commandments are a nice GUIDELINE but NO ONE can follow them completely.

Calm down and read my post again, particularly the analogy of a siege situation in Australia.
Scenario: A crazed drug addict has taken his kids hostage in a Sydney suburb. A bad bad man. What do you think the Aussie police are going to do? Storm the place with guns blazing? No, they would plan a way to get the kids out SAFELY despite that their own father is the one putting them in danger.
If the crazed bad man was a Muslim on the terrorist watch list, it would make no difference to how the cops would deal with it, ie with the kids in mind.

Your response is quite disgusting. The kids should die because the dad is bad and he himself put them in danger.
Think about it please Limmy.

Looks like Eli really, really needs somebody to criticise this person being taken out.

Pity there won't be any applicants, really.

In their absence he'll just play MAKE BELIEVE by twisting the words of someone who HAPPENS not to be a frothing MORON.

He and his children were in the middle east when they were killed and he even had one of his children do killings in the the name of islam. No regrets at all form me for him or his children. To use children to hide behind just shows how INSANE this guy was.

Originally Posted by Eliminator

To use children to hide behind just shows how INSANE this guy was.

Yep.
And so all his children deserve to DIE!!! Die, die you wee innocent things who had no choice in the matter. Die and go to hell because you're dad was a bad man.

Ever heard the expression, "sins of the father"?

I had hoped you would have had time to think about it.
Sad.

Love a story with a happy ending.
His kids deaths are on him alone.

Originally Posted by Maanaam

Calm down and read my post again, particularly the analogy of a siege situation in Australia.

Scenario: A crazed drug addict has taken his kids hostage in a Sydney suburb. A bad bad man. What do you think the Aussie police are going to do? Storm the place with guns blazing? No, they would plan a way to get the kids out SAFELY despite that their own father is the one putting them in danger.

In Australia the police have control of the environment.

This guy took his kids to a war zone.

Scenario: A crazed drug addict has taken his kids hostage in a Sydney suburb. A bad bad man. What do you think the Aussie police are going to do? Storm the place with guns blazing? No, they would plan a way to get the kids out SAFELY despite that their own father is the one putting them in danger.

Not even remotely similar.

The seahorse just doesn't get the point, Lantern and Latindancer both do so sad you don't. It's all the fault of the father that he took them there and was still killing people.

You maanaam are just a troll and an apologist for these evil scum of the earth that hide behind children.

Manaam's cool, Eliminator. He's no troll or apologist.

He's just traumatised to hear about kids being killed like that.

OK LD, I'll take your word for it. I am so sorry that kids got killed but I guess I just got pissed off when he spouts all this BS about it not being the way it would have gone down this way IN OZ. EVERYONE knows that.

Good Aussie name that

Originally Posted by Eliminator

You maanaam are just a troll and an apologist for these evil scum of the earth that hide behind children.

Yes, he MUST be, like EVERYBODY ELSE who doesn't cheer YOUR VILE grunts and UTTERINGS.

Put him ON IGNORE, like all the others who DISAGREE with you.

Originally Posted by Eliminator

an apologist for these evil scum

I guess you missed this bit which is from the post you reacted to.....

Originally Posted by Maanaam

Good riddance to scum, but it is sad that Australian children, any children, have to be collateral damage.

Originally Posted by Looper

This is the first-known time that Australian children are believed to have been killed by a Western air strike in the Syrian conflict, and serious questions will be asked about what role Australia played in the operation that led to their deaths.

Yes, anyone with a sense of propriety would ask those questions, which is what I'm supporting, and what you and Lantern have misconstrued.

Originally Posted by Eliminator

he even had one of his children do killings in the the name of islam

Fantasy. There is no evidence of that at all.

Originally Posted by Eliminator

I am so sorry that kids got killed

No you're not, you were glad.

Originally Posted by Eliminator

No regrets at all form me for him or his children.