PUTRAJAYA, June 5 — Malaysia has to also win the ideological warfare to address the threat of terrorism instead of only with the use of military and police assets and through arrests, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today.
The Prime Minister said the recent terrorist attacks in Kabul, Manchester (United Kingdom), Marawi (the Philippines), Jakarta and London were serious and most saddening.
“Alhamdulillah (Praise be to God), our country has been spared these attacks so far. However, the threat of terrorism must be addressed, but not just with the use of military and police assets and arrests,” he said at the monthly assembly of the Prime Minister’s Department at Dataran Perdana Putra here..
Najib said it was important to win the ideological warfare against the threat of terrorism but more than that it was vital “to understand what Islam really is, what it demands of us”.
Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein attended the assembly for the first time following his appointment as Minister with Special Functions in the Prime Minister’s Department in April.
Quoting a verse from the Quran on belief in Allah (God), Najib advised that the reminder by God be used as a guide to keep Malaysia peaceful and blessed so that work could be carried out to develop the country for the well-being of the people.
The Prime Minister said Malaysia did not need groups which pretended to do good but brought devastation instead.
Najib also referred to the establishment of the King Salman Centre for International Peace and described it as a triumph for Malaysia.
Malaysia and Saudi Arabia agreed to establish the centre during the visit of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud to Malaysia in February in a bid to correct the negative perception of the world community towards Islam. — Bernama
