Malaysia’s Isis sympathisers draw focus after deadly Ulu Tiram attack

The 21-year-old attacker who killed two policemen in the Johor Bahru suburb of Ulu Tiram on Friday was shot dead at the scene. He was reportedly buried on Monday in an isolated grave as a mark of condemnation, in accordance with instructions from the state’s fatwa committee.

Radicalised students from the school have since spread out across Southeast Asia, according to Benny Mamoto, a retired Indonesian police general who investigated the Bali bombings. Local media reported on Tuesday that authorities were considering demolishing the school building, with the head of the local religious affairs committee saying he had received complaints that it was still in operation, despite the building no longer being in use.

Malaysian police initially identified the suspect in Friday’s attack as a member of JI. But on Sunday, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution described it as “a lone wolf attack” unrelated “to some big overall mission or a dangerous group”.

There was a danger that a splinter group could start carrying out attacks again, “especially now that there is no new leader in JI that could control them”, Adhe said.

Yet a regional security source told This Week In Asia that there was only a “very slim chance” of JI “re-establishing itself” in Malaysia due to the advanced age of remaining members and their “mental faculty issues”.

“Many of the younger generation can’t even recall what JI is, let alone describe its mission,” said the source, who requested anonymity as they are not authorised to speak to the media. “Even young people from Luqmanul Hakim village subscribe to modern lifestyle now and perceive keeping up with social media as trendy.”

Authorities have yet to establish how the Ulu Tiram attacker was radicalised. “He is not a