Malaysian Police Foil Suicide Attack by ISIL-Linked Militant


Malaysian Police Foil Suicide Attack by ISIL-Linked Militant

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Malaysian police said Saturday they have arrested four individuals suspected to be involved with Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and that one of them was planning a suicide attack in the country.

Malaysia's police chief says a suspected militant arrested in a train station in Kuala Lumpur has confessed to planning a suicide attack in the country.

The 28-year-old Malaysian man is believed to be a member of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISL) militant group and was arrested on Friday with weapons and documents related to ISIL, the police said.

In a statement on Saturday, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar said the suspect confessed to planning a suicide attack in Malaysia after receiving orders from a foreign ISIL member in Syria.

"The suspect is also responsible for hanging ISIL flags at several locations in the states of Terengganu, Perak, Selangor and Johor, in order to warn the government to stop arresting ISIL members in Malaysia," Khalid said in the statement.

No further details were given on where or how he was planning the attack, the Ausrtalian Associated Press (AAP) reported.

Malaysia has been on high alert since a bomb and gun attack in neighbouring Indonesia's capital on Thursday. It has beefed up security in public areas and on its borders.

Indonesian police killed one suspected militant and arrested two more in raids across the country on Friday, a day after an attack by ISIL suicide bombers and gunmen in Jakarta that killed seven people. They announced more arrests on Saturday.

Khalid said three other people suspected of being supporters of ISIL were also arrested between January 11 and January 15.

The three were arrested at Kuala Lumpur international airport after they returned from Turkey, where they were detained for trying to make their way into Syria to join ISIL.

The three suspects are aged between 23 and 28. A picture of the arrest released by police appeared to indicate one of the suspects was a woman.

Police said the three were recruited by a known Malaysian ISIL member named Muhammad Wanndy Mohamed Jedi, who is based in Syria. Muhammad Wanndy has been linked to a video released last year that showed a man being beheaded there.

Before Friday's arrest, Malaysia had detained 145 people since 2013 on suspicion of links with ISIL.

In September, Malaysian police thwarted a plot to detonate bombs in Kuala Lumpur's vibrant tourist area of Bukit Bintang. Other recent plots frustrated by Malaysian security forces included plans to raid army camps and seize weapons.

Malaysia's deputy home minister warned that Southeast Asia faces the threat of ISIL-inspired attacks designed to "glamorise" terrorism.

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