A NATIONAL action plan to prevent and counter violent extremism is being developed by the government, said Deputy Home Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Mohamed Said.

       According to Bernama, he said threats of terrorism can be contributed by external as well as internal elements. This, he said, includes the possibility of Malaysians being indoctrinated with extremist ideology through online sources.

       “This plan is in the process of being studied and will be launched next year at the latest,” he said at the Special Chamber session in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.

       Ismail said through the national action plan, efforts to prevent extremists’ ideology of terrorism from permeating the minds of Malaysians, can be implemented.

       “This plan will ensure that efforts to counter violent extremism are implemented in a systematic and structured manner by all government agencies with the involvement of the community,” he said.

       He said this in response to a motion brought forward by Chan Foong Hin (Pakatan-Kota Kinabalu) on whether the government was aware of reports that Indonesian terrorists including Jemaah Ansharut Daulah had set up headquarters in Sabah to recruit stateless people.

       Ismail said 38 members of the Abu Sayyaf Group, who attempted to make Sabah a safe haven for their militant activities, have been arrested since 2017. In addition, the government also detected the activities of Indonesian terrorist groups that used Sabah as a transit point before going to the Philippines.

       This began in 2019 when the terrorist network involved in the Cathedral Church bombing in Jolo, Philippines, was exposed.

       As for the kidnapping for ransom crimes, he said, from 2016 until now, a total of 16 kidnapping cases have occurred in waters off of eastern Sabah.

       The last case was reported on Jan 18 last year in the waters between Pulau Tambisan and Kuala Meruap, Lahad Datu.

       “Therefore, to prevent militant activities either in Sabah or Malaysia in general, the police in collaboration with other enforcement agencies are always ready to increase monitoring, operations and security measures to prevent the entry by terrorist elements,” he said.