Singapore police detain radicalised youth under ISA

 

An 18-year-old post-secondary student in Singapore was detained in December 2022 under the Internal Security Act (ISA) as he made plans and preparations to undertake armed violence in Singapore and overseas.

According to the republic’s Internal Security Department (ISD), the Singaporean was self-radicalised by online propaganda by ISIS in Iraq and Syria.

One of his plans includes a bomb attack on Keramat Habib Noh at Haji Muhammad Salleh Mosque, as he believed that the gravesite, which was decorated and not at ground level, was “un-Islamic”, said ISD.

“He downloaded a C4 bomb-making manual online, intending to construct a homemade explosive to flatten the grave,” said the department, in a statement issued on the Home Affairs’ Ministry website today.

At the time of his arrest by ISD, the youth’s attack plans against Keramat Habib Noh had not progressed beyond the ideation stage.

According to ISD, the youth started down the path of radicalisation in 2020 after he came across YouTube videos by two foreign extremist preachers.

From late 2021, the department said the youth also developed a desire to live in an Islamic caliphate governed by sharia (Islamic law).

To this end, ISD said he wanted to establish an Islamic caliphate in Singapore, and recruit Muslims to join the caliphate.

ISD said its investigation to date indicates that he acted alone and there is no indication that he was successful in recruiting or radicalising others, while his family members were not aware of his attack plans or intention to undertake armed violence overseas.

In this case, ISD said he was deeply radicalised to the extent of being prepared to undertake armed violence both in Singapore and overseas, and to kill and die for ISIS’s cause.

“Our assessment was that he had become an imminent security threat, and he was detained under the ISA,” said ISD.

The department noted that his case highlights the continuing appeal of ISIS’s violent ideology, sustained through its online propaganda efforts and network of global affiliates.

“The case also underscores the trend of youth radicalisation seen in recent years, and the threat of lone-actor attacks against soft targets, using simple, easily accessible weapons,” it said.

- Bernama