Australian authorities are preparing for the return of more women and children from former Islamic State caliphates in the Middle East.

Two women and four children who are Australian citizens have returned to Australia after managing to smuggle themselves out of Syria to Lebanon, where they were issued Australian passports after passing security checks.

The women who had travelled or were taken to Syria to become partners of ISIS members, and their children, had been living in refugee camps in Syria after the collapse of the terrorist group.

It has stirred up a political storm for the Albanese government as the opposition criticises the return of so-called "ISIS brides", saying it had been kept secret from the public amid community safety concerns.

The federal government says they arri

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