Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam (right) and Minister of State for Home Affairs Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim addressing the media at Masjid Maarof on April 2. - Photo: ST
SINGAPORE: A 15-year-old Singaporean student who wanted to marry an ISIS fighter in Syria started at least eight online relationships with supporters of the terrorist group.
She considered saving money to travel to Syria to fight for ISIS, start a pro-ISIS family and raise sons to become fighters for the cause.
In February, the Internal Security Department (ISD) issued a restriction order (RO) against the self-radicalised girl.
She cannot travel out of Singapore or access social media without approval.
On Wednesday (April 2), ISD said the girl is the first female teen to be dealt with under the Internal Security Act (ISA).
ISD noted that her case mirrors a global trend of female teenagers who aspire to travel to Syria to fight, or to support the ISIS cause by becoming jihadi brides, or wives of ISIS militants.
ISD said: “The threat posed by ISIS has not abated, sustained through its online propaganda efforts, virtual network of supporters and global affiliates.”
After seeing ISIS propaganda online in June 2023, the girl became convinced it was a legitimate religious army, and supported its use of violence to cleanse the world of non-Muslims and Shi’ite Muslims.
One month later she pledged allegiance, via a chatbot, to ISIS’ former caliph – a requirement before one could marry an ISIS fighter.
From then on, she saw herself as a member of the terror group.
Husband-hunting
The girl frequently reposted ISIS propaganda on her social media accounts to attract other supporters into pursuing a romantic relationship with her.
Between July 2023 and December 2024, she was in at least eight short-term romantic online relationships with overseas-based supporters, including an alleged ISIS fighter in Syria.
On three occasions between September 2023 and April 2024, she searched for flights from Singapore to Syria.
While her priority was to marry an ISIS fighter and raise a pro-ISIS family, she was also willing to fight for the group in Syria.
She thought she could receive weapons training from ISIS once she was in Syria.
ISD said: “Influenced by footage of female ISIS fighters online, she hoped to die a martyr.”
Though the girl shared ISIS-related content with her schoolmates, none of them took it seriously or reported the materials to their teachers.
ISD said the girl had acted alone and failed to radicalise her schoolmates.
The girl’s mother advised her against consuming pro-ISIS materials, but did not think her daughter’s behaviour warranted further intervention.
Noting that the girl is also the second-youngest person to be handed an ISA order, ISD said her case highlights the persistent threat of youth radicalisation in Singapore.
The youngest person dealt with under the ISA was a 14-year-old boy who was issued an RO in June 2024.
He had aspired to fight for the Black Flag Army – a prophesied Muslim army that is said will engage in a final battle with non-believers during the end of times – and considered carrying out attacks in Singapore.
Seek help quickly
On April 2, ISD also said it issued an order of detention in March against a 17-year-old boy who was radicalised by violent far-right extremist ideologies and wanted to attack five mosques in Singapore.
Referring to the girl and the 17-year-old, ISD said that in both cases, the young people “had separately shared their extremist views and/or materials with family members and friends, yet none of the family members had sought help for them”.
On Tuesday (April 2), Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam, who is also Law Minister, spoke to the media at Masjid Maarof, one of the 17-year-old’s targets, in Jurong West.
He said some families may not realise how far their children have been radicalised, adding that in this case the girl’s willingness to fight and die for ISIS through violence presented security concerns.
Shanmugam said: “We have to educate people that, look, you actually help your children, young people, by reporting, and we will, if they are reported early enough, we can help them earlier. They won’t be so radicalised.
“If you leave it be, bad things can happen to their children. They might go out and kill somebody or be killed.”
ISD urged the public to be vigilant to signs of radicalisation and to quickly seek help from the authorities.
Noting that self-radicalisation can happen very quickly, ISD said: “Doing so (seeking help) allows the suspected radicalised individual to get the help they need, and keeps society safe.”
Possible signs of radicalisation include:
- Frequently surfing radical websites.
- Posting/sharing extremist views on social media platforms, such as expressing support/admiration for terrorists/terrorist groups as well as the use of violence.
- Sharing extremist views with friends and relatives.
- Making remarks that promote ill will or hatred towards people of other races, religions or communities.
- Expressing intent to participate in acts of violence overseas or in Singapore.
- Inciting others to participate in acts of violence.
Anyone who knows or suspects that a person has been radicalised should contact the ISD Counter-Terrorism Centre hotline on 1800-2626-473 (1800-2626-ISD). - The Straits Times/ANN
