For those who weren’t worried that the threat of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militant group aren’t applicable here, think again. Mesmerised by the fallacious glory of ISIS, two Singaporean youths — both still in their teens — have been detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) for terrorism-related activities.
19-year-old post-secondary student M Arifil Azim Putra Norja’i was detained under the ISA in April after investigations revealed that he was making plans to join ISIS. His path to radicalisation actually started around 2013 after he exposed himself to terrorist propaganda online, and started to actively research on how to join the militant organisation in Syria.
The naive teen grew to support their radical ideology and violent methods, and even furthered his research on making improvised explosive devices. His radicalism grew to the point where he indicated that he would carry out violent attacks in Singapore — destroying key facilities, assassinating government leaders and even attacks on the public — if he was unable to join ISIS.
His intention to carry out the attacks in Singapore were corroborated by several people who Arifil tried to recruit, and he was finally arrested when one brought him to the attention of the authorities. The teen is now the first known self-radicalised Singaporean to harbour such intent to strike violent terror in the country.
In a separate case, a 17-year-old radicalised Singaporean teen was arrested under the ISA for further investigations. His family was informed about the arrest, and the authorities will be updating them on the outcome of the investigations.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued a reminder that family members, friends, colleagues and members of the public have an important role to play in preventing fellow Singaporeans from engaging in terrorist activities, and if anyone with information about a potential threat of radicalisation should call the ISD Counter-Terrorism Centre hotline at 1800-2626-473.
“This could save such individuals and allow them to be helped and counselled, so that they are prevented from engaging in violent activities that may cause harm to themselves and others,” MHA stated.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
