Thirty-four Australians with links to ISIS fighters in Syria could face “the full force of the law” if they return to Australia, the Albanese government has warned.

The families have been released from the Roj camp, which holds relatives of suspected Islamic State militants in northern Syria.

They are reportedly heading to Damascus as they prepare to make their way back to Australia.

Hukmiya Mohamed, a co-director of Roj camp, told Reuters that the ‌34 Australians had been handed to family members who had come to Syria for the release. They were put on small buses bound for Damascus, ahead of their departure from the country with a military escort.

However, not long after their release the group was returned to ‌the detention centre because of “technical reasons”.

Sources said ‌the families would ⁠head back to Damascus later on Monday (local time).

“It’s purely a procedural issue to be ​resolved today,” a Syrian official said.

Roj camp holds more than 2000 people from 40 nationalities, the majority women and children.

Thousands of people believed to be linked to Islamic State militants have been held at Roj and a second camp, al-Hol, since the jihadist group was driven from its final territorial foothold in Syria in 2019.

The Australian government said ⁠in a statement that it would not repatriate people from Syria.

“Our ‌security agencies ​have been monitoring — and continue to monitor — the situation in Syria to ensure they are prepared for any Australians seeking ​to return ‌to Australia,” it said.

“People in this cohort need to know that if they have committed a crime and if they ​return to Australia they will be met with the full force of the law.

“The safety of Australians and the protection of Australia’s national interests remain the overriding priority.”

Syrian government forces seized swathes of northern Syria from ​the ​Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in January, before agreeing ​to a ceasefire on January 29.

The US military last week completed ‌a mission to transfer 5700 adult male Islamic State detainees from Syria to Iraq.

Mohamed said the Syrian Kurdish-led authorities had previously facilitated numerous releases from Roj, via coordination with foreign governments.

Roj camp is where British-born Shamima Begum is held. The British government took away her citizenship on national security grounds in 2019.

“Shamima Begum’s situation is the same as that of ​all the women in Roj camp … If her country wants her back, our doors are open,” Mohamed said.

-with AAP