Tag: Islamic State

Singapore Identified As Possible Target For Attack By Recent ISIS Social Media Post

Singapore has been identified as a possible target for attack by a recent Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) posting on social media, a report this week said.

ISIS supporters from the region have also cited the Philippines and the United States as targets, the report’s author, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies analyst Jasminder Singh, told The Straits Times.

This development comes as Malaysia last month nabbed a cell with explosives targeting Putrajaya and the federal Parliament, and as Singapore’s Home Affairs Ministry on Wednesday announced the detention of a 19-year-old student who made plans to join ISIS in Syria and carry out attacks here.

It is not the first time Singapore has been cited by radicals. Last year, extremist English-language magazine Resurgence cited the Phillip Channel and Sembawang Naval Base in a piece on how militants could attack at sea.

The threat to Singapore and the region is set to grow as ISIS’ Malay archipelago combat unit, Katibah Nusantara, formed in Syria last August for South-east Asian fighters who find it easier to communicate in Bahasa Indonesia and Malay rather than Arabic, gains ground.

There are now more than 700 fighters from Indonesia and over 200 fighters from Malaysia fighting in Iraq and Syria, Mr Singh noted in the report published this week. While they make up a small proportion of over 30,000 foreign fighters from 90 countries, the unit scored its first major combat success last month, seizing five Kurdish-held areas in Syria.

The unit is likely to gain importance in ISIS’ strategic goal of setting up a worldwide caliphate, with returning fighters mobilised to undertake attacks and even declare a new branch in this region.

“The downward slide of jihadist appeal and success since 2009 has been reversed by Katibah Nusantara’s success in Iraq and Syria,” Mr Singh wrote.

He said Malaysian fighters have also seized on local issues like the push for an Islamic penal code to win support. More recently, ISIS sympathisers online have called on Rohingya fleeing persecution in Myanmar to go to Syria.

Professor Rohan Gunaratna, who heads Singapore’s International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research, says the unit poses a severe threat to Singapore and South-east Asia.

“It has multiple functions: to train people capable of carrying out attacks in Iraq and Syria, to instigate South-east Asians to mount attacks in their home countries, and to radicalise South-east Asians online, recruit them and physically facilitate their entry into Iraq and Syria,” he said.

Hence, the strategy to counter this influence has to be multi- pronged, from engaging the community to exposing ISIS’ evils online. Muslim leaders worldwide are also leading the effort to counter ISIS, he added.

They include Singapore’s Mufti, Dr Fatris Bakaram, who said it was a religious obligation for Muslims here to report to the authorities those who pose a threat.

Source: www.straitstimes.com

May 29, 2015
Alfian Sa’at: Calvin Cheng Getting Too Big For His Boots

Last one before I wash my hand of this tawdry ex-NMP, ex-price-fixer, ex-young-PAP and current has-been-yet-wannabe affair. Uh, yucks:

I have been off Facebook for almost two weeks, trying to find some quiet time. The grief comes in waves and the feelings are still raw.

Imagine then my shock at reading Calvin Cheng’s post, trying to link me and my writings with radicalised youths, calling me a ‘domestic agitator’ who deserves to be detained without trial once ‘red lines are crossed’ (of course with draconian instruments like the ISA the definition of this ‘red line’ is meant to be conveniently arbitrary).

Was this a response to something recent that I posted? No. It was a response to the recent ISA arrests of some Muslim youths. And somehow Calvin Cheng found it necessary to tar me with the same brush, perhaps in the hope of threatening me to keep silent, or not raise questions about certain issues that make him uncomfortable—or that he doesn’t have the capacity to rebut robustly and convincingly.

The suggestion that I might be linked to Muslim extremism would be hilarious if not for the fact that Calvin Cheng thinks that it is a valid charge. He probably has no idea about how I’ve been attacked by those from the Wear White campaign and accused of being a ‘secular fundamentalist’. He doesn’t know that my play, ‘Nadirah’, was about interfaith understanding, and that my play ‘Parah’ critiqued Malay-Muslim ethnocentricism in Malaysia. These details don’t bother him, because he probably thinks that when you want to get a Muslim person to shut up, then you go full on McCarthy and try to associate him with terrorism. Which is its own kind of racism.

I have at various times tried to record the experiences of being a Malay minority in Singapore. And they have all been above board–it’s there in my plays, my books. These works have been funded by government bodies, which have very strict guidelines on anything that might cause racial and religious discord. Online, I don’t join clandestine closed groups and polemicise in echo chambers. The very fact that my posts are set to public means that just about anyone is free to tell me whether I have indeed crossed a line, like for example if any of my points about Singapore not honouring the ideals of multiculturalism is seen as vile hate speech against the Chinese. Calvin Cheng would have ample opportunity to engage me on these matters. And if indeed he had reasonable arguments to offer, then I would most certainly temper my posts. But he has chosen not to, and instead snipes at me without specifying which of my writings fall into the category of ‘terrorist propaganda’—which is what those youths (in MHA’s account) had been exposed to.

I actually think that this Calvin Cheng has had me in his gunsights for a while now. I don’t write exclusively about race, and I’m sure my writings about Amos Yee or Lee Kuan Yew must have pissed him off in some way. So he seizes the opportunity to lambast me based on some current event and spectacularly misfires.

The online world is a strange one. For some reason some of the most articulate social commentators—Alex Au, Andrew Loh, Carlton Tan, Howard Lee, Vincent Wijeysingha, Kirsten Han, Lynn Lee, Joshua Chiang, Gwee Li Sui, Imran Mohd Taib, Sudhir Thomas, Loh Kah Seng, Thum Ping Tjin, Isrizal, Martyn See, Chris Ho, Donald Low (whose smackdown of Calvin Cheng really revealed what an intellectual pygmy the latter was) etc—tend to be critical of the establishment. And in the other corner, we have Jason Chua and Calvin Cheng. It must be terribly frustrating and lonely. Once I get past my annoyance, I realise that what I really feel for Calvin Cheng is pity. Pity that the sheer paucity of people in his corner has led him to think that he is bigger than he really is. Pity that his responses in the wake of his slander has run along the lines of yapping taunts like ‘come sue me’, ‘come slap me now…you don’t have the balls’, ‘take a queue number’, ‘make me take down the flag from my profile (if you think I dishonour it)’. Pity that in shooting his mouth off, he’s succeeded in shooting the messenger–oh, and his own foot.

Source: Alfian Sa’at

May 29, 2015
Report Cases Of Radicalism Promptly, Counsellors Urge

Amid concerns over how friends of self-radicalised youth M Arifil Azim Putra Norja’i did not report him to the authorities despite knowing what he was up to, youth counsellors and experts yesterday stressed the need for the community to report such cases promptly to the authorities, given the potential dire consequences.

Ms Nur Irfani Saripi, a Religious Rehabilitation Group (RRG) counsellor, said that had someone not alerted the authorities, Arifil might have succeeded in pulling off his plans.

“It is not easy to report someone you care about, but it is necessary especially if that person has become influenced by deviant and violent ideologies, like those of ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria),” she said.

But she noted that “when someone is detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA), he or she is deemed a serious threat to national security”.

On Wednesday, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said that Arifil, a 19-year-old post-secondary student has been detained since April under the ISA.

He had hoped to travel to Syria to join ISIS, failing which he planned to carry out attacks in public places here, even going to the extent of trying to recruit others to help him.

MHA said that while these persons were not recruited, they did not alert the authorities about Arifil.

The authorities were notified by another person who knew the teenager and had noticed changes in him.

Separately, another teenager, a 17-year-old who was unnamed, was also arrested under the Act for further investigations into his radicalisation, MHA said.

The Ministry refers cases to the RRG for counselling.

While Ms Nur Irfani noted that Arifil was detained because he fit the bill of someone who poses a serious threat to national security, the associate research fellow at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies’ International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research said those who have been detained for radicalism “must be provided proper counselling to try to guide them back”.

Agreeing, counsellors and experts felt that the book should not be thrown too quickly at these misguided youths.

To this, the MHA explained that when a report is made, investigations will be carried out to determine whether the person reported has been radicalised, and if so, the extent of radicalisation, and the risk and potential threat the person poses.

“In appropriate cases, the person may be referred for counselling and other mitigation measures without the need for arrest,” said an MHA spokesperson.“Counselling or rehabilitation programmes are tailored to the person’s specific circumstances, including age.”

Psychiatrist Adrian Wang, who runs his own clinic, noted that “youths are easily attracted to radical ideas, especially if the idea can compensate for a lack in some area of their lives”.

Self-radicalised youths have their lives ahead of them and should be helped as much as possible to turn over a new leaf, he added. “We have to try and understand the factors that caused this young person to become so interested in ISIS.”

The MHA spokesperson urged the members of the public who observe extremist tendencies in any person “to report this early, so that efforts can be made to save him or her from becoming a danger to himself or herself, and to others”.

“This is particularly so for youths who are impressionable and who could need guidance to steer them away from radicalisation,” the spokesperson added.

Among parents and youths whom TODAY interviewed, there seems to be a general reluctance to report self-radicalised youth to the authorities as soon as they are uncovered.

Ms Noorulain Sheik Mohideen, 48, who has two children aged nine and 17, felt that someone like Arifil should not be treated too harshly, and should be given psychological treatment.

Polytechnic student Siti Nursyazwani Ramle, 18, said: “What I’d do firstly is to ask him why he harbours these kinds of thoughts, and then start to talk to him about how these ideas are not right. If it becomes severe, like if he has intentions of bombing, I think it’s important that I report him to the authorities.”

Ms Samantha Chng, 41, whose children are aged 15 and 17, said parents need to be aware of what their children do or read online.

“I am monitoring (my children’s) activities on social media. I don’t throw a (smart device) at them and let them use it without guidance,” she said.

Source: www.todayonline.com

May 29, 2015
Calvin Cheng: Irresponsible Rhetoric Alleging Racial Discrimination Against Malays Fuelling Would-Be Radicals

The self-radicalisation of the ISA-detained youth by ISIS propaganda is worrying.

We need to be acutely aware of the seductive messages behind these terrorist groups, as everywhere, they prey on the feelings of Muslims with promises of glory and power under a revived caliphate.

In countries where Muslims are minorities, ISIS propaganda takes advantage of feelings of insecurities, fabricate lies that they are being oppressed and then thereafter persuade them to commit acts of violence against their alleged oppressors, all under a twisted version of Islam.

That is why in Singapore, we have to be careful as we have similar fault-lines that can be exploited.

People like Alfian Sa’at for example need to be careful of their irresponsible rhetoric, which allege racial discrimination against our Malay-Muslim brethren.

At the best of times, these allegations should be carefully considered. With ISIS stoking the flames worldwide and seeking to radicalise Muslim minorities everywhere, they should tread even more carefully about inciting racial and religious disaffection.

The Government should watch commentators like Alfian Sa’at closely and if red lines are crossed, the use of the ISA on these domestic agitators should not be ruled out.

Source: Calvin Cheng

May 28, 2015
Teo Soh Lung: Releases And Arrests Under The ISA

Yesterday’s press releases (27 May 2015) of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) are depressing. Three men were released from indefinite imprisonment under the Internal Security Act (ISA) a year ago, but it is only now that we are made aware this.

The three men were:

1. Mohamed Rashid bin Zainal Abidin, arrested in May 2006. He was released on 26 May 2014 with restrictions;

2. Sahrudin bin Mohd Sapian arrested in January 2012. He was released with restrictions on 24 February 2014; and

3. Mohamed Rafee bin Abdul Rahman, arrested in January 2012. He was released with restrictions on 24 February 2014.

The three were released in February 2014 and May 2014. Why did the MHA take more than a year to inform us of their release? Are we not entitled to know what the MHA does with ISA prisoners? Who and how many people have they arrested and for how long do they need to remain in prison? By keeping silent about arrests, imprisonment and releases of prisoners, the MHA behaves like a state sanctioned clandestine organisation.

The ISA is an unjust law. Prisoners are not charged and tried in open court. There is no judicial review for ISA cases. Release of ISA prisoners depend on the whims and fancies of the executive who may or may not rely on the reports of the ISD. The threat of indefinite imprisonment instils great fear in prisoners. Behind the four walls of the prison, they are quickly forgotten by the public. In Singapore, we do not have human rights organisations or religious organisations who demand updates on the well-being of prisoners. Even the United Nations is not able to extract any information from the MHA. The Justices of Peace who allegedly visit prisoners at regular intervals are not answerable to the public. They merely play the role of do-gooders and do not check the excesses of the government.

The MHA now informs us that Mohamed Rashid bin Zainal Abidin who was arrested in 2006 was released in 2014, a period of eight long years. Why was he imprisoned for so long? We hear from the MHA that JI or Jemaah Islamiyah has faded and it is now the era of ISIS. So why was he imprisoned for eight long years? MHA owes the public an explanation, not just the two liner alleging that Rashid was a “JI member who had undergone terrorist training in south Philippines. He was released from detention and placed on Restriction Orders (RO) on 24 Feb 2014.”

Sahrudin bin Mohd Sapian and Mohamed Rafee bin Abdul Rahman were both released after two years. Both men had allegedly undergone terrorist training and were JI members.

Why was the release of these three men kept a secret for more than one year?

And what about the following prisoners?

1. Haji Ibrahim bin Haji Maidin arrested in December 2001.
2. Alahuddeen bin Abdullah, arrested in October 2002.
3. Mohd Aslam bin Yar Ali Khan, arrested in December 2002.
4. Mas Selamat bin Kastari, rearrested in September 2010.
5. Abdul Rahimbin Abdul Rahman, arrested in February 2012.
6. Husaini bin Ismail, arrested in May 2012.
7. Abdul Basheer s/o Abdul Kader, rearrested in September 2012.
8. Asyrani bin Hussaini arrested in March 2013.
9. Masyhadi bin Mas Selamat, arrested in October 2013.

Let us hope that those imprisoned today will not suffer imprisonment for 32 years as Dr Chia Thye Poh did and that the government will in the meantime, look after their material and psychological well-being as well as that of their families. I hope the government will not let the families suffer poverty as they did to thousands of others in earlier decades.

New Arrests under the ISA

In another press release of the same date, the MHA announced the arrests of two young people – M Arifil Azim Putra Norja’s, aged 19 and an unnamed youth, aged 17. They were arrested under the ISA in April and May 2015 respectively.

Is there no other law that can deal with young people other than the ISA? Is there no Muslim organisation that can help these youths, if they are indeed misguided? What about the existing Religious Rehabilitation Group (RRG) and the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS)? Cannot the MHA seek their assistance instead of taking such draconian action and giving them a lifetime black label?

The arrest of these two young people reminds me of the hundreds of youths arrested between 1954 – 1987. Many of them were students and could not continue their studies after imprisonment. Unlike those times, Singapore today is a developed country. Why is it that we are still not able to handle young people without using the ISA?

Young people are the future of Singapore. How we treat the young reflect the maturity of our society. As I have said before, the government made a mess of Amos Yee. Are they making another mess with these two young people? MUIS and RRG should do their best to intervene in these arrests. The effect of indefinite imprisonment without trial under the ISA is not to be taken lightly.

I hope the government will re-examine its decision to use the ISA against these two young people. The ISA is not to be used lightly and worse, on our young.

Teo Soh Lung

Source: Function 8

May 28, 2015