Singapore home minister Shanmugam clarifies ISA curbs on self-radicalised teen and woman who support terrorism

The people of Singapore were “deeply concerned about the situation in Gaza”, but sympathy for Palestinians could not mean inciting terrorist attacks, said Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam.

He addressed the media in Singapore today regarding the restriction orders placed — under the Internal Security Act (ISA) — on two individuals: a male student aged 14 who wanted to join a militant group and carry out attacks within Singapore; and a female former public servant aged 33 who advocated attacks on Israelis and Jews.

Shanmugam clarified in his media address that the ISA restrictions were placed on them not for supporting Palestine, but for supporting terrorism.

The student was placed under restriction last month, and the adult was restricted earlier this month. Being under ISA restriction means not being able to change one’s address; go out of Singapore without government permission; and not being able to access the Internet, including social media, without approval.

Singaporeans are deeply concerned about the situation in Gaza, and rightly so. It’s a massive humanitarian crisis affecting the Palestinians, and many of us sympathise with the Palestinian cause. I sympathise with the Palestinian cause. They should have their own country and not suffer like this. But sympathy for any foreign cause cannot mean we can support or allow terrorism.

K Shanmugam, Law and Home Affairs Minister of Singapore

He said that the people of Singapore who were moved by the Gaza situation had shown support through fundraising and contributing to humanitarian aid.

Citing the example of the radicalised teenager and the adult, the minister said they showed that external conflicts could impact Singapore internally.

Over the past decade, the ISA had been used to deal with 40 radicalised Singaporeans, said the minister, adding that 13 of them were aged 20 or younger.

Giving details of the restriction orders, a Ministry of Home Affairs media release said today: “Two self-radicalised Singaporeans, a 14-year-old male youth, and a 33-year-old female, An’nadya binte An’nahari (An’nadya), were issued with Restriction Orders (RO) under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in June and July 2024 respectively.”

It added: “The two had been separately self-radicalised online. Their radicalisation came from a common trigger, the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.

“The Secondary Three student aspired to fight for the Black Flag Army (BFA) and considered carrying out attacks in Singapore. He is the youngest individual to be issued with an ISA order.

“An’nadya, a former manager with a Statutory Board, staunchly supported the Axis of Resistance (AOR), a network of Islamist militant and terrorist organisations including Hamas, Al-Qassam Brigades (AQB), Hizbollah and the Houthis. She also advocated violence against Israelis and Jews. She is the second public servant to be issued with an ISA order.”

Process of self-radicalisation

Describing the process of self-radicalisation of the student, the ministry release informed: “The youth’s radicalisation was triggered by Hamas’s 7 October 2023 terrorist attacks against Israel, and occurred within a short span of months after extensively viewing online pro-Hamas content and news.”

About the adult woman, the release said: “An’nadya first attracted security interest in May 2021 for online posts which had the potential to incite social disharmony. She did not exhibit radical inclinations then, and had deleted her online posts after being advised by the authorities.

“She came to attention in April 2024 for her online activities, which included threats to attack and kill Israelis. An’nadya’s radicalisation started after Hamas’s attacks against Israel on 7 October 2023. She started watching online videos of the situation in Gaza, many of which showed Palestinians being killed. She also joined several social media groups, many of which shared information on military operations by Hamas and its military wing, AQB. She subsequently became aware of the AOR and their military operations.

“She began to view the groups under the AOR as resistance fighters, despite knowing that they had been designated as terrorist organisations in several jurisdictions.”