LTTE cadres among foreign militants using Malaysia as base

Foreign militants, including remnants of the Tamil Tigers, are using Malaysia as their operational base and for recruiting new activists, a top minister said today. Home minister Hishammuddin Hussein said here today that militant groups, both Islamic and non-Islamic, were using Malaysia as their operational base to step up their violent struggle. He said these groups were also using the southeast Asian country for their financial transactions and exchange of information, besides recruiting people. "Among those targeted for recruitment are students of local higher learning institutions," the minister told reporters.

State-run news agency Bernama quoted Musa Hassan, the inspector-general of police, as saying that Malaysian police had detected the presence of several senior leaders of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) who were reportedly using Malaysia for shelter and logistic base. Hishammuddin said the home ministry was working closely with local enforcement and international intelligence agencies to share data on foreign nationals entering Malaysia and their movements, to curb activities that could threaten national and regional security.

The minister's comments came after Musa said yesterday that foreign militants in insurgent group Jemah Islamiah (JI) were trying to revive the movement by recruiting 20 to 30 local youths, including university students. He said JI wanted them to take part in so-called 'jihad' abroad. This discovery followed the arrest since early this year of 10 foreign JI members who were deported from Malaysia. "The members, who were harboured by locals, were arrested at various locations and deported from the country," Musa said.

 JI has been linked to al-Qaeda and blamed for major attacks in Southeast Asia, including the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people. The home minister said this (militancy) is an international phenomenon which involves a broad network of militant or terror groups, and we should not compromise on this matter. Asked about JI members trying to recruit students into the militant group, Hishammuddin said this was not new. "But what is worrying is that it involves cross-border crime, which is not a small matter." He said his ministry and its enforcement agencies would continue with measures to ensure that the country and its people were safe.