Singapore detains man who plotted knife attack on Jews; considers tighter security at places of worship

Amirull bin Ali, 20, has been detained without trial under the island nation’s Internal Security Act for planning to kill three Jewish men after they left a synagogue

Law and home affairs minister K. Shanmugam says security measures at religious sites ‘may have to be stepped up a bit’ to balance increasing risks

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Singapore’s colonial-era Internal Security Act has in recent years been used against suspected militants. Photo: Reuters

Published: 6:29pm, 10 Mar 2021Updated: 6:29pm, 10 Mar 2021

Singaporean authorities on Wednesday said a 20-year-old local man, who was serving mandatory national military service, had been indefinitely detained over his plan to kill three Jewish men when they left a local synagogue.

The detention of Amirull bin Ali under the country’s Internal Security Act (ISA) was the second in months involving a young would-be militant’s plan to target a place of worship in the multiracial island nation, and a senior official said the fresh development meant security in religious sites could be stepped up.

The Internal Security Department (ISD) in a statement said Amirull was detained earlier this month after the Ministry of Defence alerted it to the possibility that he could be self-radicalised.

Amirull had also made plans to travel to Gaza to join the Ezzedeen al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas government in Palestine, the ISD said.

The department said Amirull had become enraged “that Jews were thriving peacefully in Singapore while Palestinians were suffering overseas” after watching a documentary shown on local broadcaster CNA.

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