Militants using Sabah as transit point to get to southern Philippines

KUALA LUMPUR — Extremists are increasingly using Sabah as a major node to funnel recruits from the region to the southern Philippines.

An Islamic State (IS) cell headed by former Universiti Malaysia lecturer Dr Mahmud Ahmad is using the eastern Malaysian state as a transit point whereby militants from peninsular Malaysia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and even Rohingyas from Myanmar’s Rakhine state get to Marawi City, which is the stronghold of Philippine militant group Abu Sayyf Group (ASG), Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar said.

Militants gather in Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan in Sabah before the IS cell helps them reach Marawi City.

The plot was unraveled following the recent arrest of three foreign men – one from Philippines and two from Bangladesh – and a Malaysian woman, all suspected to members of the IS cell, The Star reported.

They were nabbed following operations by the Special Branch Counter Terrorism Division in Sabah and Kuala Lumpur on Jan 13 and 19.

Mahmud’s cell has joined forces with the ASG and intelligence sources said that he has been able to unify different radical groups in the region to form an official IS entity in south-east Asia.

“He is the main IS recruiter, especially in Malaysia and Indonesia. Aside from training with the ASG, Dr Mahmud also teaches classes on jihad and “mati syahid” (martyrdom) for IS members in southern Philippines,” The Star quoted a source as saying.

The recent arrest of militants linked to the Islamic State highlights the growing threat of Islamic extremism in the region.

Last June, militants who claimed to be fighting for IS said in a video that they had chosen ASG leader Isnilon Hapilon to lead the group’s South-east Asian faction.

The video, posted on social media, marked IS’ acceptance of allegiance by south-east Asian supporters, and called for them to launch attacks in the region.

Malaysia has arrested more than 250 people between 2013 and 2016 for militant activities linked to IS.

Muslim-majority Malaysia has been on high alert since IS-linked militants carried out an armed attack in Jakarta on Jan 14 last year. Malaysia itself has been identified by IS militants as a high-priority target.

Despite success in foiling several potential lone-wolf attacks, IS supporters managed to stage a grenade attack on a nightclub in Selangor on June 28 last year which injured eight people.

That was the first attack by IS in Malaysia, which marked a breakthrough by the terror group after numerous plots were previously thwarted by the authorities. AGENCIES