MELBOURNE -- More than a dozen young Australian women have attempted to join Islamic State (IS) strongholds in the Middle East over the last two months, Victoria Police revealed Friday.
Officers for Victoria's anti-terrorism taskforce said women were the new target for the extremist group. They are being offered marriage, a lavish life and security while in the Middle East.
Five of the known defectors have successfully traveled to Syria, while four made it to Turkey before they were intercepted by authorities.
Two are currently unaccounted for and one woman was stopped by border protection officials trying to leave Australia.
The women, as young as 18, are said to have been lured by recruiters over social media.
Victoria Police's Assistant Commissioner Tracy Linford, who runs the state's anti-terror taskforce, said that young women were being lured as much as young men.
She said on Friday that recruiters preyed on vulnerable women who could be easily influenced to travel to conflict zones such as Syria and Iraq.
"We want people to understand that it's not just a phenomenon of young men wanting to travel over to the conflict zone and join ISIS, there are women that are being lured there as well," she told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
But she said police were not aware of the full number of defectors.
"I suspect there are more than 12, but these are the ones we have a good understanding of," she told News Corp.
"What we have seen is deliberate attempts on their part to cover up what they are doing."
Linford said the young women, mostly between the ages of 18 and 20, had been fooled by the prospect of a "romantic view of life".
"It doesn't surprise me these young women can be romanticized by false truths coming through on social media," she said.
"They are told they have an important role to play in setting up the Islamic State."
Linford said that families needed to be the first line of defense against defectors heading to conflict zones.
She told family members to keep abreast of changing behavioral patterns in young men and women, particularly if they are disengaging from friendship and family circles.
Victoria Police estimate that 30 men had joined the ranks of IS in the same time period.
