Zulfikar Mohamad Shariff, the Singaporean arrested and detained for terrorism-related activities, had contributed to the radicalisation of at least two other Singaporeans, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said on Friday (Jul 29).
One of them was Muhammad Shamin Mohamed Sidik, who has since been detained, and Mohamed Saiddhin Abdullah, who was issued with a Restriction Order for two years in July.
A person issued with a Restriction Order is not allowed to change his residence or employment or travel out of Singapore without prior approval from the authorities.
The 33-year-old businessman identified Zulfikar, whom he befriended online, as the person who had influenced him to support the Islamic State.
“Saiddhin had looked up to Zulfikar and followed his postings; he was convinced by Zulfikar’s positive portrayal of ISIS and later started reposting Zulfikar’s postings on ISIS as a form of jihad, emulating Zulfikar,” MHA said.
Like Zulfikar, Saiddhin also photographed himself adopting the common pose of jihadi fighters while standing in front of an Islamic State flag. He posted these photographs online as a show of his solidarity with militants fighting in Syria and Iraq, the ministry added.
OTHER RADICALS DETAINED, ISSUED WITH RESTRICTION ORDER
Separately, MHA also said that another 17-year-old male Singaporean has been issued with a Restriction Order for two years.
Investigations showed that the teenager, who recently graduated from a madrasah, had become radicalised online after viewing pro-Islamic State videos, websites and social media material.
“He became convinced that ISIS’ violent actions were justified and harboured the intention to fight for ISIS in Syria in the future where he was prepared to die a martyr,” MHA said, adding that he also sought out other like-minded individuals online and tried to influence his friends.
Another 27-year-old Singaporean was re-detained under the ISA for two years in April after he planned to join a terrorist group like ISIS to engage in armed violence in Syria, the ministry said.
Muhammad Fadil Abdul Hamid was previously detained from 2010 to 2012 when he was self-radicalised, and wanted to engage in armed violence in Afghanistan. He was released from detention in 2012 and placed on a Restriction Order.
Fadil had initially made some progress in reintegrating into society, MHA said. However, he later became attracted to radical online material again, like teachings of radical ideologues such as Anwar al-Awlaki and the propaganda of ISIS, and fell under its influence.
He became convinced that partaking in the violence in Syria was “justifiable jihad” and wanted to fight alongside ISIS militants in Syria. He also reverted to the belief that militant jihad was the easiest way to achieve martyrdom, the ministry said.
Another self-radicalised Singaporean, Abdul Basheer, 37, was released after his detention order was suspended in February, while the Restriction Order of Rijal Yadri Jumari, 35, was allowed to lapse upon expiry in March this year.
Source: ChannelNewsAsia
