Malcolm Turnbull has muscled up his language on national security, declaring Australia’s objective is to kill fighters serving with Islamic State in the Middle East wherever possible.
The prime minister, who made a significant effort when he took over the top job to calm the superheated terrorism and national security debates that raged while Tony Abbott was prime minister, told reporters on Friday: “Our goal as far as those who serve with Daesh in the Middle East is to kill them.
“Let me be quite frank: that is our goal,” Turnbull said.
“Our Australian defence force now has the legal ability to do so, whether they have a gun in their hand, bomb in their hand or whether they are plotting or raising money.”
“This is a war against Daesh and we are determined to destroy them and we are destroying them.”
The escalation in the prime minister’s rhetoric came as the immigration minister, Peter Dutton, acknowledged the government might need to strengthen the legal framework allowing the prosecution of returning foreign fighters.
Australia faces a significant security challenge with the return of jihadist fighters from the conflict in the Middle East, and Dutton told reporters if there were ways to improve the law, the government would be “open to that”.
He said he had discussed a potential strengthening of the regime with the prime minister and the attorney general. “The government is always looking at ways in which we can improve the legislation and if there are ways in which we can improve the legislation, then the government will proceed with that,” he said.
The prime minister told reporters agencies had the challenges posed by returning foreign fighters “well in hand”, but the government updated and reviewed the legal framework all the time.
On Friday the director general of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, Duncan Lewis, confirmed there were just over 100 Australians engaged overseas. Another 200 were being investigated domestically for giving support to foreign fighters.
There were 70 children with foreign fighters who were Australian citizens or could have claim to citizenship. That number included children born overseas and in Australia.
At least 64 Australians had been killed in the conflict and perhaps as many as 70, with deaths accelerating as the fighting intensified in Iraq and Syria.
About 40 foreign fighters had returned from overseas, though 36 did so before the rise of Isis.
Since 2012, 195 citizens have had their passports cancelled to stop them leaving the country and another 36 people have had their passports temporarily suspended, usually for up to 14 days, to investigate travel plans.
Of those Australians investigated by agencies, 85% were male and 80% were under 35. Most suspects were now between the ages of 15 and 25, a cohort which is a decade younger than it was four years ago, Lewis said.
On Friday Turnbull attended the official welcome for two joint strike fighter aircraft at the Avalon air show. Australia is a participant in the American-led Lockheed Martin Joint Strike Fighter program.
He told reporters he had discussed Australia’s defence investment program with Donald Trump and “he was very, very impressed to hear about the investment we have made”.
“Our defence investment is massive,” Turnbull said. “We are spending 2% of GDP as you know. The Americans have complained that many of their allies have not been close to that.
“So nobody anywhere in the world, least of all in Washington, would suggest Australia is not pulling its weight consistently. Consistently we box above our weight in every theatre.”
