Terrorists Marked Two Singapore Spots as Targets Last Year

The Straits Times

02 June 2017

Two places in Singapore were marked by terrorists as potential targets last year, signalling a significant increase in the terror threat here, analysts said.

Dr Kumar Ramakrishna, head of Policy Studies and Coordinator of the National Security Studies Programme at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, said the fact that the targets were singled out showed a “ramp-up” in the threat level.

“Previously, Singapore would usually be mentioned generally as a target, but this suggests that (the terrorists) are going a step further,” he said, adding that the public should be concerned that the country was being “seriously considered” as a target.

Analysts said one of the reasons that the terror threat here remains high is that Singapore exists in a region with countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines, where terrorism has taken root.

The report pointed out that over the next two years, about 200 terrorists would be released from prisons in the region and could return to terrorism if they were not rehabilitated.

“It is important for governments to track them and see what activities they engage in,” said Dr Rohan Gunaratna, head of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research, adding that these individuals could infect others with their ideas.

Dr Gunaratna added that while the Government has dealt with the problem effectively, with tools such as the Internal Security Act to preventively detain suspected terrorists, more could be done.

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Last updated on 02/06/2017