Two Singaporeans were separately found to have become self-radicalised, the Internal Security Department (ISD) has said.
They were a 14-year-old boy and a 33-year-old woman, a former public servant, who had accessed content online.
Source: Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash. Photo for illustration purposes only.
As a result, both of them have been served Restriction Orders (ROs).
In a press release on Monday (15 July), ISD said the unnamed teenage boy’s self-radicalisation occurred within a short span of months.
It was triggered by the Israel-Hamas conflict, which flared up on 7 Oct 2023.
Source: Mahmud Hams for AFP/Getty Images via The Guardian
The Secondary 3 student had extensively viewed pro-Hamas content and news online.
He ended up being convinced that it was his obligation as a Muslim to fight for the Black Flag Army (BFA) — a prophesised Muslim army.
To prepare himself to join the BFA, the teenager took steps including training physically and saving money to travel to Afghanistan.
He also tried unsuccessfully to radicalise several schoolmates.
In addition, he was willing to conduct attacks in Singapore if he couldn’t travel to join the BFA.
He had planned to expand an online chat group he started to up to 100 people and then attack non-Muslims during local festivals such as Chinese New Year, Christmas and Deepavali.
This would facilitate the establishment of an Islamic state in Singapore, he hoped.
Based on his actions, the teenager was issued with an RO under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in June.
This prohibits him from changing his residence or job, or travelling out of Singapore, without the approval of the ISD director, among other restrictions.
Without permission, he also cannot:
He is now the youngest person to be issued with an ISA order in Singapore.
Previously, the youngest person issued with an ISA order was a 15-year-old Singaporean boy detained under the ISA in December 2022.
Since 2015, ISD has dealt with 13 self-radicalised individuals aged 20 and below under the ISA.
The boy will undergo a rehabilitation programme that includes religious counselling by the Religious Rehabilitation Group (RRG) and an RRG mentor.
He will also receive psychological counselling from an ISD psychologist.
ISD officers will work closely with his family and school to ensure that he has adequate support.
Source: Google Maps
His family members, who were unaware of his radicalisation, had nevertheless noticed signs of his beliefs but did not think they warranted intervention and assistance.
ISD has found that he acted alone and didn’t manage to radicalise his school mates.
As for the 33-year-old woman, she is a former manager with a statutory board named An’nadya binte An’nahari, ISD said.
While she was employed by the statutory board when she was under investigation, she is no longer working there.
In May 2021, she made online posts which “had the potential to incite social disharmony” and deleted them after the authorities advised her to do so.
She did not exhibit radical inclinations then, ISD added.
However, after the Israel-Hamas conflict started on 7 Oct 2023, An’nadya began watching online videos of the situation in Gaza.
She also joined several social media groups that shared information on Hamas and became aware of the Axis of Resistance (AOR), a network of militant and terrorist organisations.
She actively participated in pro-AOR social media groups, identifying herself as a Singaporean and even made contact with pro-AOR individuals.
Now a staunch supporter of AOR, she agreed to be the administrator of an AOR social media channel.
She also called for violence against Singapore, according to ISD.
In April 2024, An’nadya attracted attention for her online activities, which included threats to attack and kill Israelis, ISD said.
She was flagged as a security concern due to her support for AOR, her willingness to spread its propaganda and her close online contact with foreign extremist elements.
Despite being warned in 2021, she escalated her online activities, ISD noted, adding:
She was aware that her online activities and support for the AOR were against the law, and had thus refrained from mentioning her extremist activities and views to her colleagues at the statutory board.
However, she did share the AOR channel’s invite link with her family and friends to encourage them to join.
She was unsuccessful in recruiting them, ISD said.
Based on her actions, An’nadya was issued an RO under the ISA in July.
She is now subject to the relevant restrictions under the RO.
She is the second public servant to be issued an ISA order in Singapore, the first being former Ministry of Education teacher Mohamed Khairul Riduan Mohamed Sarip.
He was issued with an Order of Detention in November 2022 for making plans to travel to Gaza to engage in armed conflict, and remains in detention.
Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam, who spoke to the media on Monday (15 July), said action was taken against the two individuals “not because they supported Palestine… but because of their support for armed violence”.
Source: K Shanmugam Sc on Facebook
He was quoted as saying by TODAY Online that anyone can be radicalised, regardless of age, gender, religion or profession, adding:
Those radicalised are getting younger. This is a global trend.
The two were not detained but served ROs instead as the orders must be calibrated to deal with the assessed threat.
In their cases, ISD assessed that ROs were enough for the time being, adding:
We try to let them continue with their lives as much as possible while moving them away from the path of radicalisation.
ISD urged the public to remain vigilant to signs that someone may have become radicalised and quickly seek help for them.
This is so that the authorities can intervene early to save them from getting involved in violent activities that could harm themselves and others.
In both cases, the boy’s and An’nadya’s families had noticed shifts in their behaviour and views.
However, they did not recognise them as possible signs of radicalisation.
Also read: I Counsel Radicalised Individuals In S’pore, Here’s What They Don’t Tell You About Rehab
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Featured image adapted from Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash. Photo for illustration purposes only.
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