POFMA order issued to TOC editor, publisher over article on Singaporeans serving in IDF

SINGAPORE – A correction direction has been issued to the chief editor and publisher of The Online Citizen (TOC) over false statements in an article about the Government’s response to two Singaporeans who allegedly served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) during the Gaza conflict.

In a press release on March 26, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said Coordinating Minister for National Security K. Shanmugam has instructed the POFMA Office – which administers the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) –  to issue a correction direction to Mr Terry Xu and Miao Yi Infotech, a company in Taiwan that publishes TOC.

MHA said the police is also looking into this matter to determine if there are any potential criminal offences arising from the statements made in the article, which was published on March 5 on the websites and social media accounts of TOC and the artificial intelligence-driven media platform Heidoh.

The ministry said the article contained false statements concerning Mr Shanmugam’s reply to parliamentary questions on Singaporeans allegedly serving in the IDF during the Gaza conflict.

Following a report published by British investigative journalism outlet Declassified UK on Feb 11 which suggested that there were two Singapore passport holders who were serving in the IDF during the Gaza conflict, Mr Shanmugam addressed multiple parliamentary questions (PQs) on the claims on March 5.

Mr Shanmugam, who is also Home Affairs Minister, said that there was no substantial information to confirm that two Singaporeans fought for the IDF during the conflict in Gaza. The Government had asked the Israeli government to verify the allegations in the report, but had not received a response, he added.

MHA said on March 26 that the TOC article made several false statements of fact, including that Mr Shanmugam had deliberately chosen to give incomplete answers to MPs’ questions, and that the Government had information to act on apart from the information in the Declassified UK article.

This included identifying information of the two Singaporeans, as evidenced from its formal request to Israel.

Among other things, Mr Xu had claimed in his article that Mr Shanmugam had “deployed a masterclass in forensic language management” in Parliament, and in doing so had responded to MPs’ questions “without actually answering them”.

Clarifying the facts, MHA reiterated that the Government currently does not have information that any Singaporean had served in the IDF during the Gaza conflict, apart from the information in the Declassified UK article. It noted that the Declassified UK article did not provide any particulars or identifying information “of these two alleged Singaporeans”.

MHA said that the Government has no information on the veracity of these allegations, nor on the identity of the two individuals and had therefore made the request to the Israeli government for information.

“It is therefore false to suggest that the Minister deliberately chose to give incomplete answers to the PQs. His reply to the PQs was given based on all the information available to him,” it added.

In the article, Mr Xu also alleged that the Government did not issue any POFMA directions against Declassified UK, because it was true that two Singaporeans had served in the IDF.

MHA said that absent any further information, the Government was unable to assess whether any false statements of fact were communicated in the Declassified UK article, and consequently no action was taken against the British media organisation under POFMA.

It was therefore false to suggest that the directions under POFMA were not issued against the Declassified UK article because the allegations were true, said the ministry.

MHA also took issue with TOC’s allegation that the Government had deliberately chosen not to take action under the Internal Security Act (ISA) or the Penal Code against the two Singaporeans allegedly to have served in the IDF in order to preserve diplomatic relations with Israel, and because of the city-state’s cordial relations and longstanding defence and intelligence ties with Israel.

Mr Xu had said in his article that Mr Shanmugam had “shown no reluctance to deploy POFMA swiftly and publicly” when the Government assesses a statement to be false, but “he did not deploy it here”.

In its statement, MHA said the Government has not taken action against the two Singaporeans purported to have served in the IDF during the Gaza conflict – whether under the ISA or Penal Code – as it did not have substantiated information on the veracity of the allegations nor on their identities.

Singaporeans found to be fighting or planning to fight in foreign armed conflicts, regardless of the cause or side they are supporting, will be dealt with sternly in accordance with the Republic’s laws, including under the ISA if they are found to be a threat to our national security, said the ministry.

“Several Singaporeans have been detained, or issued with restriction orders, on such grounds in the past,” MHA added.

The ministry said TOC has “a track record of repeatedly communicating falsehoods”.

It noted that in July 2025, the TOC website and its Facebook, X and Instagram pages were designated as Declared Online Locations under POFMA – the second time that TOC’s online locations were so designated.

The first declaration was made in July 2023 against TOC’s website, Facebook, X and LinkedIn pages.

MHA also said this was the 25th correction direction that has been issued in connection with falsehoods communicated by Mr Xu, TOC and other affiliated publications.

On March 23, the Ministry of Law (MinLaw) said the POFMA Office was instructed by Law Minister and Second Minister for Home Affairs Edwin Tong to issue the correction direction to Mr Xu and Miao Yi Infotech over false statements concerning the appointment of Singapore’s Attorney-General.

MinLaw said several falsehoods were published, including that Attorney-General Lucien Wong has not recused himself from acting on matters pertaining to the compulsory acquisition of 38 Oxley Road.

Under the order, Mr Xu and Miao Yi Infotech were required to publish correction notices on TOC’s websites, Heidoh’s website, TOC’s Facebook and Instagram pages, and in The Straits Times.

MHA said that the latest correction direction also requires Mr Xu and Miao Yi Infotech to publish a print correction notice in ST, for accountability and to correct the public record.

“The public is encouraged to be discerning when engaging with information published on TOC’s and Heidoh’s platforms,” said MHA.