Rabiah Hutchinson grew up in Mudgee. Having moved to Sydney, she joined a student Islamic group and then taught in an Indonesian school run by the Muslim cleric Abu Babar Bashir. In 1990, Hutchinson travelled to Pakistan where she worked in a Mujaheddin hospital and orphanage. She later spent time in Afghanistan where she ran various health facilities.
Hutchinson's circle of contacts included Osama bin Laden. Following the September 11 attacks in the United States, Hutchinson took refuge in Iran where she was held under house arrest by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. She was repatriated to Australia in 2003.
Source: Sally Neighbour, 'Muslim Matriarch's Suburban Nightmare', Weekend Australian (2-3 May 2009): 1, 6.
