Countering the Narrative of Terrorism

TODAY

16 June 2015

Nur Irfani Saripi and Nur Azlin Mohamed Yasin

The recent arrest of one Singaporean teenager and the detention of another for being involved in terrorism-related activities is a matter of serious concern for all Singaporeans, for several reasons.

Firstly, they are some of the youngest would-be “jihadis” encountered here thus far. Post-secondary student M Arifil Azim Putra Norja’i is 19 years old, while the other unnamed individual is only 17.

Secondly, not only had Arifil desired to travel to Syria to join the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria(ISIS), he also planned to carry out attacks on public places and prominent leaders in Singapore, and attempted to recruit others.

Thirdly, Arifil attempted to link up with ISIS by befriending people online who he thought could help him join the terrorist group.

… Nur Irfani and Nur Azlin are Associate Research Fellows of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Ms Irfani is also a volunteer with the Religious Rehabilitation Group (RRG). This commentary first appeared in RSIS Commentaries.

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