ISLÓMIYYÓT 40(1) 2018: 15 - 22 (https://doi.org/10.17576/islamiyyat-2018-4001-02) ISIS in Malaysia: Understanding Their Logics ISIS di Malaysia: Memahami Logik ISIS Maszlee Malik Mohd Y azid zul kepli ABSTRACT The threat of terrorism to Malaysia is growing. On June 2016, Malaysia suffered its very first confirmed ISIS-related casualty in a grenade attack on Movida Pub that resulted in the injury of eight people and by 2016, around 300 suspects were arrested and investigated due to allegation of involvement in terrorist activities. From the 261 detainees, 34 (33 Malaysian, and one Indonesian) were charged under SOSMA and sent to Sungai Buloh prison for the remand period while waiting for their sentence. This paper is partly based on a year of interview and observation on the ideological inclination of the detainees. The observation reveals that the belief in the necessity to resurrect a global Islamic State with a Caliph to unite Muslims from all over the world under a single banner has been one of the major motivations for Muslim youths to join ISIS. The paper then proceeds with the uncovering and countering the logic of the Malaysian ISIS-related detainees that the resurrection of a global Islamic State caliphate is the only way to protect the interest of the Muslim community. Keywords: Terrorism; law; Malaysia; ISIS; Muslim ABSTRAK Ancaman keganasan di Malaysia semakin berkembang. Pada Jun 2016, Malaysia turut menerima tempias kesan keganasan yang berkaitan dengan ISIS dalam serangan bom tangan di Movida Pub yang telah mengakibatkan kecederaan kepada lapan orang awam dan menjelang 2016, seramai 300 suspek telah ditangkap dan disiasat kerana dakwaan terlibat dalam kegiatan pengganas. Dari 261 tahanan, 34 (33 rakyat Malaysia, dan seorang Indonesia) telah didakwa di bawah SOSMA dan dihantar ke penjara Sungai Buloh untuk tempoh tahanan reman sambil menunggu hukuman. Makalah ini sebahagiannya adalah berdasarkan dapatan temu bual dan pemerhatian mengenai kecenderungan ideologi para tahanan. Pemerhatian mendedahkan bahawa kepercayaan dalam keperluan untuk membangkitkan semula sebuah Negara Islam global dengan Khalifah untuk menyatukan umat Islam dari seluruh dunia di bawah sepanduk tunggal telah menjadi salah satu motivasi utama bagi pemuda Islam untuk menyertai ISIS. Kertas ini kemudiannya diteruskan dengan mengupas dan menentang logik tahanan ISIS Malaysia bahawa kebangkitan khalifah negara Islam global adalah satu-satunya cara untuk melindungi kepentingan masyarakat Islam. Kata kunci: Terrorisme; undang-undang; Malaysia; ISIS; Muslim INTRODUCTION According to the Institute of Economics and Peace, Malaysia has reached the 49 th spot on the Global Terrorism Index 2015. It has climbed 42 spots within three years from being 91 st in 2012. The same report also revealed that Malaysia’s score 3.579 is on the lower scale of the index, in which zero denotes no impact of terrorism (Irsyad 2015). In 2015, Malaysia was one of the 50 countries most affected by terrorism. The Global Terrorism Index 2016 ranks Malaysia better, at the 61 st spot with the score of 2.691. However, the threat of terrorism is still serious in Malaysia. According to the sources from the Special Branch, there is an estimate of 90 Malaysians fighting the wars in Iraq and Syria under different factions fighting. Most have been identified to be affiliated to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). ISIS IN MALAYSIA: AN ANALYSIS Based on this alarming situation, the Malaysian government has enacted various new laws to curb terrorism based on the legal-security management measurement. As a result of the newly enacted laws and relentless effort by the Counterterrorism Unit, by August 2016, 261 individuals (239 Malaysians, and 22 foreigners) were detained under different charges and Acts. The majority of Malaysia’s terrorism- related arrests in 2015 were under SOSMA and penal Bab 2.indd 15 04/06/2018 12:42:10 CORE Metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk Provided by UKM Journal Article Repository