IS militants 'call each other' to gather in Southeast Asia

(Baonghean.vn)- Malaysian Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said that terrorist groups in Southeast Asian countries are acting as shelters for Islamic State (IS) militants fleeing Iraq and Syria.

Philippine troops stand guard in Marawi city, southern Philippines. Photo: AP

Speaking at the Ministerial Conference of the Islamic Military Counter-Terrorism Coalition (IMCTC) held in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), Mr. Hussein said: “Terrorist groups in the region such as Abu Sayyaf (ASG), Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) and Mujahideen have pledged allegiance to IS. These groups act as a ‘comfortable home’ for those fleeing Mosul, Aleppo and Raqqa.

They have even gone so far as to declare an Islamic state called ‘Wilayah East Asia’, which spans Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, southern Thailand and Myanmar, as they continue to lose territory in Iraq and Syria.”

Meanwhile, Nico Prucha, an expert on IS at the University of Vienna, said IS once again called on the Muslim community in the Philippines and around the world to support “a war against the army” in Mindanao province in the southern Philippines.

The expert emphasized: “The message was posted by IS on the group’s Telegram personal page on November 26, calling on everyone to launch a war in Mindanao.”

The message also said government forces would not succeed in driving out foreign IS fighters from Marawi. Foreign fighters from Malaysia, Indonesia and the Middle East have joined the fight in the southern Philippines.

The call came less than two months after the Philippine government retook control of Marawi City in Mindanao province from IS-linked militants./.

Lan Ha

(According to Channel News Asia)