Malaysian police yesterday confirmed that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) had for the first time struck in the country, with a grenade attack on a nightspot last week in Selangor, which left eight people injured.
Fifteen Malaysians were nabbed following the attack in Puchong and police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said they included two men who received direct instructions from a Malaysian ISIS fighter in Syria.
With ISIS under intense pressure in Iraq and Syria, its sympathisers have carried out a wave of attacks around the world in the past two weeks, including at Istanbul airport in Turkey, a cafe in Dhaka, Bangladesh and on a busy shopping street in Baghdad. ISIS was also suspected to be behind a suicide bombing outside the US consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, yesterday.
The surge in violence comes after ISIS urged followers to stage more attacks during the holy Ramadan month, which ends today.
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