PEKAN, Oct 1 — The related government agencies must proactively use the counter narrative approach to check the influence of the Islamic State (IS) on social sites especially on the young and university students, said Bukit Aman Special Branch Counter Terrorism director SAC Datuk Ayub Khan Mydin Pitchay.

He said this was because IS used this platform to spread their messages, inspire followers and recruit new members.

“This counter narrative is important if we want to combat the IS ideology.

We must counter the ideology touted by their social media such as one must carry out jihad (to struggle in order to achieve good deed that is permitted by Allah) and migrate (hijrah) from Malaysia to an Islamic nation (Syria).

“These are the matters which must be corrected by the religious intellectuals. We must explain the correct concept of hijrah and what is jihad.

These matters must be explained in detail so that Muslims understand that what is done by IS is not what is demanded by Islam,” he said. He said this when delivering a briefing titled ‘National Security Threat: The Influence of International Terrorism’ at Universiti Malaysia Pahang here today.

He said IS maximised the use of the social media by mobilising thousands of their proactive cyber troopers nationwide who operated alone and without pay to spread the ideology of the group.

In this regards, he said an integrated counter narrative effort must be carried out involving numerous agencies and not just the police alone if IS was to be curbed from spreading their influence in Malaysia.

According to Ayob Khan, the police had held several series of talks at institutions of higher learning and mosques in the country in the effort to create awareness among students and the people on the danger and threat of IS.

He said many of the young and students, especially those with family problems and had shallow religious knowledge, were easily influenced by the ideology of IS when they were promised a shahid death (short cut to heaven) and contract marriages.

Meanwhile, the women were prone to join IS as they were lured by the good looks of the mujahidin (those engaged in jihad) of the group and when offered to be their wives.

Most worrying was the new trend of bringing along family members and children to migrate to Syria merely because Malaysia did not implement Islamic laws, Ayub Khan added. — Bernama