Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay, Malaysian police’s counter terrorism chief, said the recruitment of foreign fighters for southern Philippines would not end soon.
“This issue is not over, I think it will keep on going,” Ayob told reporters on the sidelines of an international counter terrorism dialogue here today.
“There have been attempts to go to southern Philippines and we have intel that says recruitment of fighters is still going on.”
FMT earlier reported that some 80 foreign fighters, mostly Malaysians and Indonesians, were believed to have fought in the five-month-long battle between pro-Islamic State groups and government forces in Lanao del Sur provincial capital city of Marawi.
Philippine and Malaysian authorities had announced the names of several Malaysians who fought in Marawi.
But FMT learned from the Terrorism Research and Analysis Consortium (TRAC) that more than 30 Malaysian militants were believed involved in the Marawi siege based on chatter on pro-IS communication channels monitored by TRAC.
If this number is taken into account and considering the number of named Malaysian militants reported killed in Marawi, about 20 Malaysian militants are still unidentified.
The Philippines have not yet confirmed the identity of bodies of supposed Malaysians killed in Marawi.
Even after the end of the Marawi battle on Oct 23, Malaysians were still trying to join the terror groups there via Sabah’s east coast.
In December last year, several men were taken into custody in Sandakan after allegedly trying to join the militants in southern Philippines.
The Philippine authorities have also picked up Indonesians trying to enter the southern part of their country after the Marawi battle.
“It’s not just Malaysians, but Indonesians also like to transit in Sabah to go to southern Philippines because the routes from there are easier,” said Ayob.
“If they don’t transit in Sabah, they can head to southern Philippines directly from their country but it’s a long journey over the Sulawesi Sea, if they can manage it.
“It’s easiest to transit in Sabah. They and other Islamist groups have been using the Sabah route for a long time.”
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