And the recent spate of abductions of Malaysian and Indonesian sailors by pirates linked to Abu Sayyaf – who have made millions in ransom – may be related to IS militants building a stronghold in the region.
About 1,000 Indonesian, Malaysian, Filipino and Singaporean fighters from Iraq, Libya or Syria may be returning as the IS continues to lose ground in those countries, according to a report in the Straits Times (ST).
Indonesia and Malaysia recorded their first terror attacks this year, claimed by IS. The Philippines says the IS has taken root in Mindanao.
All three countries had experienced a surge in domestic terrorist activities in the past year, said the report.
Malaysian Muhammad Wanndy Mohamed Jedi, fighting with the IS militants, is the most wanted terrorist in the country, after allegedly ordering an attack on an entertainment outlet in Puchong. Malaysian police arrested 115 terror suspects this year, up from just four in 2013.
Adding to the fear that this region may become the next battleground for the IS, is the rise of a new generation of local militant leaders who have declared their allegiance to IS.
The ST report said IS had been expanding in Southeast Asia by appointing local proxy leaders.
According to the report, IS has been priming the southern Philippines, where the Abu Sayyaf militant group operates as its “wilayah”, or state.
Indonesian armed forces chief Gatot Nurmantyo, according to the ST report, said the recent rise in abductions by the Abu Sayayaf was a strong indication that IS was raising funds to build a base in Mindanao.
Singapore Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen was quoted by the ST as saying: “We expect the returning fighters from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and a few from Singapore, who are now in Iraq and Syria, will likely return to continue their violent plots at home.”
Indonesia’s crack anti-terror unit, Detachment 88 (Densus 88), uncovered a string of new local terror cells after Jakarta was struck by an IS-inspired attack in January, said the ST report.
In the past, most of these cells had received funds and instructions for making bombs and mounting attacks from Indonesian IS fighters in Syria.
Now, the IS fighters in Syria are ordering the locals to set up smaller and harder-to-detect cells, as well as recruit Indonesian women as suicide bombers.
“What is happening now is not home-grown terrorism… (but) a global terrorist network,” the ST quoted Indonesian police chief Tito Karnavian as saying.