Police have apprehended seven Filipino nationals, and one Malaysian, over the last two weeks in anti-terror raids across the country.
Between October 30 and November 12, officers from the Bukit Aman Special Branch Counter Terrorism Division made a series of arrests, beginning with a 38-year-old Malaysian who is accused of sending funds to an Islamic State militant in Syria. Caught in Putrajaya, he is alleged to have committed the offense in 2017.
Local media outlet The Star reports that following this arrest, several raids in the Borneo state of Sabah turned up foreign nationals who are accused of working as militant operatives: First came the arrest of three men, in the town of Tenom. Police believe the trio to be members of Abu Sayyaf, a terrorist organization infamous for kidnapping individuals and holding them for ransom. Their web operates through the southern area of The Philippines, as well as in areas of Sabah. One of the three is reportedly a weapons expert.
Days later, a duo was taken in by police in the Ranau area of the state, near Mount Kinabalu, who police believe were working as local recruiters, and also the same men responsible for some of Abu Sayyaf’s beheading executions. The two were believed to be planning an escape from Malaysia before police nabbed them.
On November 10th, another man was caught in Kinarut, Sabah, who is believed to have links with high-ranking officials in the organization, and police hauled in their last suspect on November 12, a 60-year-old man who they accuse of hiding a known militant.
All are currently being held under the SOSMA Act 2012.
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