Prime Minister John Key says there are New Zealanders fighting in anti-government forces in Syria while others have been blocked from going there by having their passports cancelled under national security provisions.
Mr Key refused to provide details on those involved, but confirmed there was a small number of New
Zealanders involved with anti-government groups in Syria.
He would not say whether some were linked to al-Qaeda groups, but Australia's Federal Police have told media that up to 100 Australians were understood to be fighting in Syria, and about six had been killed ``while fighting with al-Qaeda-linked terrorist groups''.
Mr Key said that since 2005, the law had provided for the Minister of Internal Affairs to cancel a passport in some circumstances.
"So we have the capacity to cancel a passport if we believe somebody is going into a war zone, for instance, to fight in a way we don't think is a sensible step for them to take.'' He said it was also possible to cancel a passport on national security grounds after somebody had left the country. As a result, they would have to stay where they were or be deported to New Zealand. He said fewer than 10 passports had been cancelled since that law passed in 2005, some of which related to Syria.
