Kuala Lumpur: Muslim-majority Malaysia will soon introduce a new anti-terrorism law to counter a potential security threat from supporters of the extremist Daesh group, Prime Minister Najeeb Razzak said on Wednesday.
Najib told parliament his government also would strengthen existing security-related laws as authorities express mounting concern that Malaysians who have joined Daesh will return home to spread extremist beliefs.
“Looking at the potential threat from this group, we fear the return of Malaysians from the conflict zone in Syria and Iraq will be detrimental to national security,” Najeeb said.
He expressed concern that returnees will come back with battlefield expertise and could carry out “lone wolf” attacks, but did not elaborate on what the new terror legislation would entail.
Najeeb made the announcement as he introduced a government white paper on the terrorism threat that said 39 Malaysians had gone to join the fighting in Syria, and that five had been killed.
The document also said that as of November 13, authorities had arrested 40 Malaysians at home for suspected Daesh links.
