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Counter-terrorism in Singapore

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Counter-terrorism in Singapore is a series of detection and prevention measures to minimize the damage caused by terrorism. These measures involve the participation of all levels of society, including defence, internal security, border and infrastructure security, civil defense, and gives special focus on areas such as medical readiness and psychological preparedness.

Strategy

Singapore's main counter-terrorism strategy includes cooperation with regional and international partners to achieve a transnational landscape of security. Singapore is instrumental in the passage of international initiatives such as the landmark United Nations Security Council Resolution 1373 which established the legal basis for international action against terrorism. It is also at the forefront of the Southeast Asian counter-terrorism efforts and a United States partner in the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) that aims to combat the illicit trade and spread of weapons of mass destruction.

In recent years, Singapore's counter-terrorism initiatives have created political criticism from the country's Muslim population. This was particularly pronounced when Singapore joined the international community's call for Iraq's disarmament, which eventually led to the American invasion of the country.

Timeline

See also: Timeline of Singaporean history

These are the events related to terrorism and counter-terrorism in Singapore.

1970s

On 31 January 1974, four armed men from the terrorist groups Japanese Red Army and Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine attacked the Shell oil refinery complex on Pulau Bukom and later hijacked the ferryboat Laju and took its five crew members hostage. The crisis was resolved after the Singapore government exchanged the hostages with four commandos from the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) and eight other local government officials and was led by S. R. Nathan, Director of the Security and Intelligence Division (SID) at the Ministry of Defence, and provided the terrorists safe passage to the Middle East.

The incident was Singapore's first encounter with international terrorism. It also directly contributed to the beginning of the establishment of full-time National Service for the country's police force in 1975, one year after the incident, referred to as Police National Service (PNS), which was aimed at, initially, raising a sizeable source of manpower for the police in the event of another terrorist incident on vital installations and the provision of protection and security for the latter against the former.

1980s

Total Defence was officially proclaimed as Singapore's overarching defence strategy on 22 January 1984 with five elements: military, civil, economic, social, and psychological.

1990s

2000s

  • 8 January 2006 – Exercise Northstar V, a large scale counter-terrorism exercise similar to 7 July 2005 London bombings, was held in Singapore.

2010s

  • 19 May 2010 – A marked map of the SMRT network with Orchard station circled on it was found in the home of a terror suspect killed in Indonesia; it was reported that he had planned an attack on Singapore by entering through Malaysia.
  • 9 November 2010 – Exercise Times Square Conducted. The exercise, named after a car bomb attack in May 2010 at New York's Times Square which was foiled by public vigilance, involved similar circumstances whereby suspicious looking cars were placed in nine locations across Singapore. The findings of the exercise revealed that public vigilance was extremely low, as only 52 out of 7,200 passers-by contacted the authorities.
  • 3 October to 15 November 2012 – Exercise Heartbeat 2012 was conducted. It was placed at locations, such as ION Orchard, Marina Centre, Marina Bay and Sentosa.
  • 18 November 2013 – Exercise Heartbeat 2013 was conducted, placed at random locations, such as Greenview Secondary School, ITE College Central, Plaza Singapura, one-North and Raffles Place SSWG buildings. In this exercise, two "gunmen" hijacked a police car after opening fire at Raffles Place, and then drove away. The gunmen were later shot dead by the police officers at Queenstown Secondary School. Police officers later confiscated the explosive devices.
  • 3 April 2014 – Exercise Heartbeat 2014 is conducted at Temasek Polytechnic.
  • 10 October 2014 – Exercise Heartbeat 2014 is conducted at ITE College East.
  • 26 October & 27 October 2014 – Exercise Heartbeat 2014 is conducted at Tampines GreenTerrace, Downtown MRT station, Marina Bay Link Mall, IMM Building, Blk 287A Jurong East Street 21, ITE College West and Fengshan area. It had simulated grenade explosion at IMM Building and Downtown MRT station, hostage-taking and gunmen firing at Marina Bay Link Mall, IMM Building, Blk 287A Jurong East Street 21 and ITE College West. Next to Blk 84 Bedok North Road Market also had the car on fire, part of Exercise Heartbeat 2014. At Tampines GreenTerrace; a Traffic Police car caught fire.
  • 27 January 2015 – Due to the Charlie Hebdo shootings and the Sydney hostage crisis; Exercise Heartbeat 2015 was conducted at Eastpoint Mall and Northpoint Shopping Centre.
  • 18 November 2015 – After the November 2015 Paris attacks, President Tony Tan expressed his condolences saying "As France mourns the victims, Singapore stands in solidarity with the French people in this difficult time" while Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong condemned the attacks, calling them "heinous" and "an attack on our shared humanity." Within days, the Singapore Police Force and Singapore Civil Defence continued Exercise Heartbeat 2015 with emergency preparedness exercises on 18 November 2015 at Toa Payoh HDB Hub and Marina Bay One Marina Boulevard (OMB) and City Hall Esplanade Park, as well as at Sentosa on 23 November 2015.
  • 30 June 2016 – The Minister of Defence announced the formation of the Army Deployment Force, which is a battalion-sized unit fully staffed with regular SAF servicemen. The unit will respond rapidly to terrorist attacks in Singapore alongside the Home Team. It will also work with the Island Defence Task Force and Special Operations Task Force in times of emergencies. It may be activated for overseas humanitarian or peace support operations.
  • 5 August 2016 – Members of a terror cell in Indonesia arrested for plotting to fire a rocket at Marina Bay Sands from Batam island.
  • 17 October 2016 – The Singapore Armed Forces staged the largest counter-terror exercise in the nation's history. The SAF was deployed to defend against mock attacks at key installations around the island. Home Team and the Singapore Civil Defence Force were deployed to counter a mock hostage taking at Bishan Mall. The exercise was the largest in Singaporean history, involving over 3200 officers. It was conducted with the mission statement to raise public awareness of "the current threat landscape and to encourage continued vigilance."

In 2019, digital defence was added as the sixth element of Total Defence, with the government highlighting increasing threats in the cybersphere.

2020s

  • 27 January 2021 – the Internal Security Department reported that it had arrested a 16-year old Protestant youth under the Internal Security Act in late 2020 for plotting to attack two local mosques on the anniversary of the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings. The youth was inspired by the actions of Brenton Tarrant and expressed anti-Muslim sentiments. He is the youngest person and first far right extremist to be charge under the ISA.
  • 10 March 2021 – the Internal Security Department reported that it had detained a 20-year old national serviceman named Amirull Ali in February 2021 under the Internal Security Act for plotting to attack three Jewish worshippers at the Maghain Aboth Synagogue in retaliation for the Israel–Palestine conflict. Ali had reportedly also planned to travel to Gaza to join Hamas' military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades.
  • 24 January 2024 - the ISD confirmed it had issued a restriction order under the Internal Security Act against a 16-year old Chinese Singaporean youth who had aspired to carry out overseas attacks against African Americans, Arabs, and LGBTQ+ individuals in North America and Europe. The youth had been radicalised by far right online chat groups and channels. He identified as a White supremacist and subscribed to the Great Replacement theory. Under the restriction order, the youth is not allowed to change his residence, is barred from leaving Singapore, access the Internet or social media and issue public statements, without the approval of the director of the ISD.
  • 15 July 2024 - the ISD confirmed it had issued restriction orders against a 14-year old Singaporean teenager and former public servant An'nadya An'nahari, who had both been radicalised in response to the Israel-Hamas war. The teenager had wanted to fight for a prophesied Muslim army called the "Black Flag Army" and started an online chat group for the purpose of recruiting classmates for perpetrating terror attacks in Singapore. An'nahari had expressed support for the Islamist Axis of Resistance, a network of Islamist militant and terror groups including Hamas and the Houthi, and advocated violence against Israelis and Jews.
  • 18 October 2024 – Minister for Law and Home Affairs K. Shanmugam confirmed that a 17 year old youth had been arrested under the Internal Security Act for planning to attack non-Muslims in Tampines.

Arrest of Jemaah Islamiyah members

The main terrorist threat to Singapore is from Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), which has links to al-Qaeda and Abu Sayyaf. Various members of Jemaah Islamiyah were known to have carried out the Bali bombings in 2002 and 2005, as well as Jakarta bombings in 2003, 2004, and 2009.

After the September 11 attacks on the United States, an informant revealed information to the Singapore Internal Security Department regarding Muhammad Aslam Yar Ali Khan, a Singaporean of Pakistani descent, who was a member of a group partnered with Al-Qaeda. Muhammad Aslam Yar Ali Khan was placed under surveillance by Singapore Internal Security Department, after which he left for Pakistan on 4 October. This man was captured by Afghan Northern Alliance forces in Afghanistan. His interrogation led investigators to more Jemaah Islamiyah members in Singapore.

On 9 December 2001, 13 suspects were arrested. Soon after that, a video found in an abandoned house in Kabul, Afghanistan showed a narrator in Singapore describing how to attack Americans using explosives. Investigators found similar tapes at the residences of the arrested men. In all, 33 men were arrested in relation to this plot.

In August 2002, another 21 members of Jemaah Islamiyah were arrested, demolishing JI's Singaporean cell. Arrests were also made in Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand. As of 11 November 2005, 36 alleged members of JI or the Moro Islamic Liberation Front were being detained under the Internal Security Act.

However, Singapore believes that Jemaah Islamiyah remains active in Southeast Asia and is recruiting new members.

On 25 August 2005, French investigating magistrate Jean-Louis Bruguière singled out Singapore along with Tokyo and Sydney as potential terrorism targets of the Al-Qaeda. The Ministry of Home Affairs later responded that it had not received any specific information on imminent terrorist threat against Singapore, but added that security measures have been taken to strengthen security at borders, key infrastructure and iconic buildings.

Homeland security

The Singapore Police Force has in recent years enhanced security at various locations in the country.

On 15 August 2005, the newly established Public Transport Security Command began operational patrols on the Mass Rapid Transit network to protect the public transportation system. Personnel from the Special Operations Command (SOC) and the Gurkha Contingent (GC) have also been deployed to complement other police officers on patrol. In addition, the Police Coast Guard (PCG) stepped up its effort to inspect ferries and other vessels in Singapore territorial waters.

On 26 October 2005, Deputy Prime Minister and Co-ordinating Minister for Security and Defence S Jayakumar announced that Singapore was developing an early warning system, called the risk assessment and horizon scanning, to identify and assess new emerging threats to national security. The system, developed by the National Security Coordination Secretariat, will be put in place by mid-2007.

Counter terrorist specialised units

At the forefront in the fight against terrorism are specialised military, law enforcement, and civil defence units, namely:

Additional power to military

In May 2007, the parliament passed an amendment to the SAF Act, giving additional powers to the Singapore Armed Forces. A select group of about 2,000 SAF personnel will be trained to perform security operations in designated areas. These personnel, identified by a Military Security identification card, will be able to search, detain and use reasonable force against terror suspects.

Exercise Northstar V

On 8 January 2006, a large scale emergency preparedness exercise was conducted. Codenamed Exercise Northstar V, it involved 22 agencies and 2,000 emergency personnel. An additional 3,400 commuters also participated in the exercise. The exercise involved a simulated terrorist bomb attack on four MRT stations (Raffles Place, Dhoby Ghaut, Toa Payoh and Marina Bay) and one bus interchange (Toa Payoh). There were 500 mock casualties suffering from "injuries" caused by the "explosions" as well as chemical agents. The exercise is the largest civil emergency exercise ever staged in the country.

Conduct of the exercise

The exercise started at 6:25 am local time on 8 January 2006, a Sunday, and lasted about three hours. To avoid public panic, announcements were made at the affected train stations as well as on television and radio, just before the exercise began. Prominent signages were also displayed.

Mock explosive devices, such as thunderflashes were detonated near-simultaneously in subway trains and station platforms at four MRT stations (Dhoby Ghaut, Toa Payoh, Raffles Place and Marina Bay) and in a double decker bus at Toa Payoh Bus Interchange. A chemical agent attack was then simulated at Dhoby Ghaut at 6:45 am. An undetonated mock bomb was also placed at the Raffles Place. About 3,400 commuters who were on board the subway trains were evacuated during the drill. Services at 13 MRT stations were temporarily disrupted and roads within the vicinity were also closed to traffic. Shuttle buses were used to ferry commuters affected by the exercise.

Thunderflashes, smoke generators, and fire simulators were used to simulate the explosion and 500 simulated casualties were deployed to test emergency rescuers at the scene. These mock casualties carried tags to provide paramedics information on the extent of their injuries and this includes injuries related to bomb blasts, such as open wounds and burns. There were also some with injuries related to chemical agents. Dummy mannequins were also used to simulate casualties. 7 hospitals and 2 polyclinics were also involved in the drill as they received the mock casualties. In two hospitals, Singapore General Hospital and Tan Tock Seng Hospital, healthcare workers donned decontamination suits as they prepared to treat victims of chemical agents suspected to be sarin gas.

Officers from the London Metropolitan Police and the British Transport Police, including Chief Constable Ian Johnston, were present to observe the exercise and to provide feedback to the authorities.

Social cohesion

Following the crackdown on the local Jemaah Islamiyah cell, then-Deputy-Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong held dialogues with the leaders of the Muslim community. Details of the investigation were shared to explain that the arrests were not targeted at the Singapore Muslim community, or Islam. In schools and workplaces, inter-racial confidence circles were formed to promote inter-racial and inter-religious understanding between the different racial and religious communities, while Islamic scholars and counselors in Singapore participated in the rehabilitation of the detained JI members.

See also

References

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