KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 ― The police are turning to social media to verify the identities of 15 Malaysians said to have joined a Middle Eastern Islamist militant group and killed in the ongoing Syrian conflict.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said the police are working with several agencies to investigate the alleged Malaysian involvement with terrorist group Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS).

“We are monitoring social media, which is being used as a tool to influence and recruit young Malaysians to join the militant movement,” the police chief was quoted as saying.

Syria’s permanent representative to the United Nations in New York had announced 15 Malaysians among those killed by government warplanes.

Khalid said it was tough to track down Malaysians who have left for Syria, as the individuals commonly cross borders of three to four countries before arriving in Syria.

However, the IGP asserted that the force has beefed up the manhunt for those involved in the militant movement and expects more to be detained soon.

ISIS, also known as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), is a splinter group of al-Qaeda that wants to set up an Islamic caliphate encompassing both Iraq and Syria.

ISIS is viewed as a terror organisation by authorities, both here and abroad.

A Malaysian suspected of being a member of ISIS was believed to have been the suicide bomber who killed 25 members of an Iraqi police team last month.

Earlier this month, three local men were arrested by police for suspected links to ISIS.