Acid attack: Police tracking those behind hate posts on social media, says Home Minister

KUALA LUMPUR: The police are tracking down those behind hate posts on social media targeting footballers, says Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.

The Home Minister was commenting on attacks on two local footballers recently and said that personal attacks on social media targeting footballers should not be underestimated.

"The content of these posts are just to instil hate, insult and condemn," he said.

Saifuddin added that every aspect of footballers' lives are scrutinised, "from the way they celebrate goals to their social life."

"I urge such actions to stop. The local football scene is still growing and the goal should be on raising our ranking and building a conducive environment (for it to thrive)," he said when met at the sidelines of the 2024 Defence Services Asia (DSA) and National Security Asia (NatSec) exhibitions on Tuesday (May 7). He also said that the police would explore all avenues to bring the suspects to justice.

Two local footballers have been attacked just days apart from each other.

National player Faisal Halim was attacked with acid at a shopping mall in Damansara on May 5 while Akhyar Rashid was injured during a robbery in Kuala Terengganu on May 2.