PETALING JAYA, Oct 16 —  Police continue to face with an uphill task of identifying Malaysian militant recruiters based abroad.

A police source said while three recruiters, based in Malaysia, had been nabbed police, the force was trying to track down those based in Syria and Iraq.

“Some of the Malaysian militants fighting there have a big following on social media targeting new recruits via Facebook.

The source said these militants portray themselves as heroes fighting for Islam.

The number of Malaysians aborad have yet to be established but the source said the numbers were increasing and worrying.

“Investigations have thus far been focused on those leaving Malaysia but it has emerged that some Malaysians working or studying in the Middle East have also been approached to become IS fighters.

The source said police intelligence revealed one of the recruiter in Syria has a wide network of rebel groups in various countries, especially in the Middle East.

“He used his contacts to approach Malaysians working or studying there.”

Yesterday, Inspector General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said police identified the profile of several recruiters on Facebook.

He said police also notified the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to block or shut down websites believed spreading news on militants and IS.