KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s concern for the plight of the Palestinian people may have been misinterpreted by certain quarters, says Inspector-General of Police Datuk Sri Mohd Khalid Ismail.
He stressed that the assistance extended by Malaysians was rooted in humanitarian values and religious obligations, in line with the country’s standing as an Islamic nation.
“There are also foreign students from countries such as Palestine and Syria studying at local institutions of higher learning.
“In my view, our people’s compassion could have been misunderstood by some parties,” he told a press conference in Bukit Aman on Wednesday (Sept 23).
ALSO READ: Malaysians slam author who claims country hosts Hamas operatives
Khalid said Malaysia continues to maintain good relations with the United States and other relevant nations.
"We are always cooperating and exchanging information to obtain early intelligence for more effective action in the future,” he added.
It was reported that Malaysian social media users have lambasted a US author and former counterterrorism analyst after insinuating that the Prime Minister had no interest in peace in Gaza.
On his X page on Sept 18, Jonathan Schanzer initially reposted a post by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on the ongoing conflict in Gaza, with his caption claiming that Malaysia had been hosting Hamas operatives.
"His country has been hosting Hamas operatives for years. He's not interested in peace," he wrote.
That caption then led to a flurry of comments on the post.
Many were written in Bahasa Malaysia, with some resorting to threats and crude language.
As of press time, the post had been retweeted 531 times, with around 2.4 million views.
In response, Schanzer posted a follow-up tweet, irking Malaysians again.
"Nearly a million views. Almost entirely Malaysian trolls.
"The responses are humorous and occasionally demented," he wrote.
