France is under siege again. Yesterday, a man drove a truck into a crowd in Nice and killed more than 84 people while they were celebrating Bastille Day (National Day). Scores more were injured in the attack which the French authorities believed was the work of terrorists.
Even though the French police shot dead the perpetrator, it is still not known whether other people were involved in the attack. No one has claimed responsibility for this atrocity.
In the wake of the attack, French President Francois Hollande has declared that the state of emergency has been extended for another three months. US President Barack Obama has described the incident as “a horrific terrorist attack”.
This attack could have been carried out by Islamic State or al-Qaeda. It was also probably perpetrated by a person who had been influenced by these groups.
If this attack was directed by IS or al-Qaeda, then the militants have taken their approach to another level. In the Sept 11 attack, al-Qaeda had used airplanes as their weapons to attack the US. In France, IS or al-Qaeda used a truck to kill innocent people. This is the first time a terrorist group has used a truck to launch an attack.
IS is very much different from al-Qaeda in carrying out unconventional methods of attacks. In the case of IS, its actions have always been impulsive. In Belgium and Turkey, their target was an airport, whereas in Dhaka and Puchong their targets were a café and a bar.
In Baghdad, IS used bombs to inflict maximum damage by killing more than 200 people during the holy month of Ramadan. The four suicide bombings in Saudi Arabia also happened in the same month. This goes to show that conventional targets are no longer IS' choice of attack.
IS is now the most dangerous terrorist group. For the security agencies, this is a very difficult situation to handle. The pattern used by IS has always been changing and this makes detection and prevention impossible.
In a nutshell, IS will eliminate anyone who is against its interpretation of its philosophy whether the victims are its own brothers or enemies. To establish and uphold its form of caliphate, it will use whatever methods it can find to achieve its goals. The attacks in Istanbul, Dhaka, Baghdad, Jakarta and Puchong have shown their determination to achieve their heinous intentions.
The ongoing offensive on the IS caliphate in Iraq and Syria by a coalition army led by the US has angered and infuriated IS. The subsequent statements made by IS leaders urging their supporters and sympathisers to attack the enemies have inspired attacks across the world from Europe and America to Asia. This is unparalleled.
The intelligence and security agencies have been unable to prevent or detect such planned aggression by IS. This demonstrates that the agencies need to think out of the box to tackle this serious problem.
For Malaysia, IS has posed a serious threat to national security. The first terrorist attack in Puchong indicated that such attacks are possible in the future. The threats by two Malaysian IS terrorists to harm our country have put the nation on a high level of security alert.
Prime target
The recent threats to harm the top cop on counter-terrorism, the inspector-general of police and other prominent political leaders in Malaysia demonstrate the boldness and willingness of IS to destroy the peace and harmony of this country. Therefore, surveillance operations must be stepped up to protect not only the targeted security, intelligence and political people, but also their families.
Furthermore, the publication of IS’ Malay language newspaper, Al-Fatihin, to cater for its supporters in Southeast Asia, especially Malaysia and Indonesia, clearly indicates that it has shifted its focus to this region. Lately, terrorists from Malaysia have gained recognition from IS, making this country a prime target for recruitment purposes.
Therefore, it is appropriate for the US to set up an anti-IS data centre in Malaysia to monitor not only the postings of IS on the social media but also to decipher the online messages of IS. This is because IS uses the social media and the dark web to spread and recruit potential terrorists.
The Malaysian authorities must also engage with the public to re-educate and inform them about the IS which uses religion to justify its interpretation of jihad. The religious authorities together with the security forces and NGOs must convey this vital information not only to rural areas but also to the urban places, where troubled youths lack in-depth knowledge of religion.
This is important because Malaysia has become not only a place for recruitment but has gradually become a major target for IS' attacks.
Malaysians, as stakeholders of this nation, must assume responsibility for national security. They must protect our sovereignty from IS terrorists whose intention is to destroy the country at any cost.
