KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 — PAS today repeated its threat to sack members involved with militant and jihadist groups abroad, after the spotlight fell on the Islamist party when one of its members was identified as a participant in such activity in Syria.

Party president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang said PAS disagreed with the jihadist movement currently roiling Syria and Iraq, triggered by an al-Qaeda splinter group attempting to set up an “Islamic caliphate” through violent revolution.

“PAS strictly does not allow any members to be involved with radical groups either overseas or in the country. If found, we will not hesitate to remove them from the party,” he said in his official website yesterday.

This follows news that PAS decided to expel member Lotfi Ariffin in a party central meeting on May 11.

Secretary-general Datuk Mustafa Ali told Harakah Daily that they have verification that Lotfi left for Syria to join a jihad movement.

He also said the Islamist party will sack any member involved in similar movements.

Last month, the Star daily reported Lotfi as a PAS leader among a group of Malaysians who had gone to Syria and become a part of the jihadist activities there.

On its website, the local daily noted that photographs and video clips allegedly taken by Lotfi had been posted on the internet, as well as purported blogs posts of his activities in Syria by his supporters.

Malaysia is also in the global spotlight after some of its citizens allegedly joined the growing Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) movement in the Middle East.

A Malaysian suspected of being a member of the jihadist group was believed to have been the suicide bomber who killed 25 members of an Iraqi police team in May.