Hisham to call for collective support to battle IS threat in Asia
KLUANG: Cooperation to curb the threats of Islamic State (IS) militancy in the Asean region will be one of the main issues raised by Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, today.
Hishammuddin, who is attending the inaugural meeting of Islamic Military Counter-Terrorism Coalition Countries (IMCTC), said the 41-nation coalition, formed in 2015, would call for the collective support from member countries to control the IS threat from spreading, especially in Asia.
He said the Cairo mosque bombing, which saw the killing of more than 300 people during Friday prayers, showed the need for a concerted effort to put an end to the menace.
“The time has come for every nation to come together and put an end to the IS militant group’s terrorist acts against unarmed civilians who were being massacred over a meaningless cause.”
Hishammuddin said coalition members needed to work together to counter the threats of IS from establishing its cells in any of the allied countries.
“This is not a fight for just one nation, but requires collective effort from all, including the sharing of information and intelligence that may give us a fighting chance against the group.”
He said the militant threats in the Asean region could clearly be seen when the first IS flag was hoisted in Marawi City, the Philippines, recently.
He said other countries needed to know what was happening in Asean so that they could provide support to curb terrorism and share experiences in dealing with the matter.
Hishammuddin, who is also Sembrong member of parliament, said this during the launch of the eRezeki and eUsahawan bootcamp to introduce Sembrong residents to online business.
In December 2015, Saudi Arabia announced the establishment of IMCTC as a unified pan-Islamic front against terrorism.
The formation of the IMCTC alliance was to forge efforts on counter terrorism and exchange global best practices on specific IMCTC initiatives.
The goals of the alliance include strengthening the contribution of Islamic countries towards global security and peace; complementing international counter-terrorism efforts; reinforce solidarity and collaboration among coalition member countries.
The time has come for every nation to come together and put an end to the IS militant group’s terrorist acts against unarmed civilians... DATUK SERI HISHAMMUDDIN HUSSEIN
Defence minister