Like the stirring of a hornet’s nest — as an expert here put it — the imminent defeat of Islamist militants in the southern Philippine city of Marawi could pose a bigger problem further down the road, terrorism analysts said yesterday.

What was previously largely contained in the Philippines could escalate into a security nightmare for the region if the militants regroup in other areas near the Sulu Sea such as eastern Malaysia, and parts of Indonesia, said S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) research fellow Graham Ong-Webb.

Dr Rohan Gunaratna, who heads RSIS’ International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research, also warned that if “regional governments fail to contain the threat, (the problem) will spill over into Singapore”.