SERI KEMBANGAN, April 22 — An Islamic NGO has expressed fears that Malaysia is potentially vulnerable to infiltration by foreign or rogue agents, after a 35-year-old Palestinian was gunned down yesterday.

MyCARE Chairman Prof Hafidzi Mohd Noor said the killing of 35-year-old Palestinian electrical engineer and academic Fadi al-Batsh in Setapak yesterday morning reinforces the suspicion.

He urged the government to ensure the country cannot be infiltrated by such agents, to preserve Malaysia’s safety and security.

"This includes Israeli citizens who enter the country as part of an international delegation, since we have nothing to do with Israel,” Hafidzi said, referring to the delegation headed by diplomat David Roet in February 12 for a UN conference in Kuala Lumpur, which triggered a firestorm.

"We have complete trust in the government’s abilities to do so, only asking that they be as thorough in checking the status of questionable individuals entering Malaysia as much as possible,” he said during the MyCARE press conference at its headquarters.

Agreeing with the claims by Fadi’s family that he was assassinated by agents of Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad, Hafidzi said this was likely due to his contributions in the field of renewable energy.

"In the past few years, he has published up to 18 dissertations on renewable energy, which were featured in notable scientific journals.

"He also endeavoured to put his knowledge and skills to benefit his people and the world,” he said.

Hafidzi also refuted the "sensationalistic” news that flooded social media which claimed that Fadi was a rocket and drone expert.

"He was no such thing. He was peace-loving and would have never done anything to endanger his host country,

"I plead with the public to ignore such information from questionable sources. For all we know, it could be slanderous accusations spread by the Israelis to besmirch Fadi’s reputation and memory,” he said.

However, Hafidzi said the killing should come as no surprise, since Fadi’s family has been targeted by Israel for years.

"He lost 18 family members in the 2009 Gaza War, and he himself had been targeted by an Israeli Apache helicopter while living there,” he said.

Fadi, a lecturer at Universiti Kuala Lumpur British Malaysian Institute, was gunned down by two assailants as he headed for early morning prayers.

The Times of Israel reported that Fadi had published materials on drone development and transmission controls, stating that if Mossad was indeed behind the killing it was to prevent advanced technologies from reaching Hamas, the party which currently governs Gaza.

In turn, Hamas has vowed retaliation for Fadi’s killing.