Operation Maharlika, which means “majestic” in the Tagalog language, will be conducted from Nov 1 to 15, with training and equipment support from the world police organisation.
During the operation, security agencies from the participating nations will be exposed to the use of Interpol’s worldwide database of criminals, particularly terrorists.
“We will carry out the Maharlika joint operation with Interpol involving four countries – Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and the Philippines,” Bukit Aman director of Internal Security and Public Order Zulkifli Abdullah told reporters here today.
“Each country’s law enforcement agencies will carry out their operation within their respective territories with training and equipment support from Interpol.
“During the operation, we’ll use certain gadgets and systems to check Interpol’s database for any prior criminal records of the person being checked on the spot.
“We will know whether the person is wanted in the country or elsewhere.”
In Malaysia, Zulkifli said, the Eastern Sabah Security Zone (Esszone) would be the focus of the operation, which is the first of its kind to be held in the country.
“The operation will be coordinated by the four countries,” he said.
“If the operation is successful, we will review it and may continue it in the future. If there’s a cross-border entry of foreign terrorists, we will share the information in real time.
“In Malaysia, the operational focus area is the Esszone, so this is good for Sabah. But if there’s info on terrorist movement elsewhere, we’ll operate there too.”
Zulkifli said Malaysia’s cooperation with Interpol had been ongoing, but that this was the first time they were working together to curb the entry of foreign terrorists.
Meanwhile, Interpol said the terror threat in Asia would continue, but that effective anti-terrorism efforts should be commended.
“Asia, like other regions in the world, has been and will continue to be a target of terrorists. But at the same time, the rate of success of the authorities in preventing terrorism should be commended,” Interpol director of Operations Support and Analysis Haralt Arm said.
“Operations such as Maharlika are one of the ways the Interpol member countries secure their borders and prevent the movement of terrorists and materials that could be used in attacks.
“No one country or region can address these issues alone, and efforts such as these are essential in preventing terror attacks.”
According to Arm, sharing vital information on a real-time basis is important for law enforcement personnel on the front line.
He said Interpol’s database contained 75 million records, with three billion checks made last year.
“Today, our database is checked 200 times per second.
“We therefore encourage member countries to use Interpol’s capabilities as we have seen great results in countries sharing information.”
The areas of the operation in the four countries will extend from airports to sea and land borders.
Interpol will compile all statistics from the operation and table them during a debriefing session at the end of the year.
Bank Negara: Terrorists finding ways to avoid detection in money transfers