S’pore ‘must guard against threats from lone wolves’
SINGAPORE — While the Republic has not seen a heightened threat specific to its support of the international coalition against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), it needs to be on guard against possible threats by “lone wolves” and “clean skins”, people who are not on terror watch-lists, said Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean yesterday.
The Sydney cafe siege last December, where two hostages were killed, is a reminder that there is “no guarantee” that such attacks can be prevented in Singapore, Mr Teo, who is also the Home Affairs Minister, told Parliament.
He was responding to a question by Member of Parliament Alex Yam (Chua Chu Kang GRC), who wanted to know whether the Ministry of Home Affairs has detected a heightened threat to Singapore, and whether additional measures are required to address issues of self-radicalisation.
Mr Teo said that although Singapore’s security agencies maintain good cooperation with their foreign counterparts and regularly exchange and share information on terrorists and terror suspects, such counter-terrorism measures are not foolproof in preventing foreign terrorists from entering the country.
He cited the case of Mehdi Nemmouche, a French national who fought in Syria and went on to carry out an attack in Brussels, Belgium, in May last year, killing four people. Nemmouche had travelled through Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore en route to Europe, but eluded local security agencies as he was not on Singapore’s watch-list.
“All countries face the challenge of stopping ‘clean skins’,” said Mr Teo.
While the minister agreed with Mr Yam that self-radicalisation is a problem that can lead to “lone-wolf” attacks, Mr Teo also noted that Singapore’s community and religious organisations had put in considerable effort to counter the radical ideology of the ISIS and jihadist terrorists.
In April, Singapore will be hosting the East Asia Summit Symposium on Religious Rehabilitation and Social Reintegration, which will see participating countries share best practices and build capability to counter the terrorists’ radical ideology.
While local security agencies continue to take the necessary measures to prevent terror attacks in Singapore, Mr Teo emphasised that the public also has an important role to play, particularly in dealing with self-radicalisation. “Family and friends are best placed to notice changes in the people close to them,” he said, adding that they should contact the authorities if they suspect someone is at risk of becoming radicalised.
Mr Teo said how Singaporeans respond to an attack is important, as reacting appropriately can save their lives and that of others.
“It is equally important that we do not allow terrorists to achieve their objectives — to sow mistrust, division and enmity between the different communities in our society, or to create fear to stop us from going about our daily lives,” he added.
