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Malaysian woman jailed for offering to help ISIS

A 26-year-old has become the first Malaysian woman to be jailed for offering help to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group, media reports said

The Jakarta Post
Kuala Lumpur
Thu, April 2, 2015

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Malaysian woman jailed for offering to help ISIS

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26-year-old has become the first Malaysian woman to be jailed for offering help to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group, media reports said.

The case came as a Cabinet minister said the government is preparing a "rehabilitation module" for Malaysians suspected to be involved in militant activities.

Ummi Kalsom Bahak, who worked as an assistant credit controller, was sentenced to two years' jail by the High Court on Tuesday, the New Straits Times (NST) reported yesterday.

Judge Kamardin Hashim handed down the sentence after Ummi pleaded guilty to attempting to support ISIS by trying to marry one of its members last year, NST reported.

She was arrested at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport on October 5 last year while on her way to take an AirAsia flight to Istanbul.

She was to travel to Syria from Istanbul to get married to ISIS militant Aqif Huessin Rahaizat and become a member of the extremist group.

Deputy public prosecutor Afzainizam Abdul Aziz had pressed for a deterrent sentence, saying Ummi committed a serious offence, reported NST.

Ummi's jail sentence was backdated to the date of her arrest on October 5.

The Malaysian authorities have arrested 75 people suspected of being involved in militant activities, home minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told Parliament on Tuesday, the NST reported.

Of those, 24 have been charged in court, six have had action taken against them, 25 have been released and seven remain under investigation, Ahmad Zahid said.

The remaining 13 people are foreigners and have been deported to their countries of origin, he added.

He announced that the government was drawing up a rehabilitation module to "neutralise" the extreme ideology of those involved, on top of ongoing prevention measures and public awareness campaigns.

"We want to help and prepare them to return to the society," Dr Ahmad Zahid was quoted as saying by the NST.

The report did not give other details on the module.

Earlier this month, police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said police had identified 50 Malaysians who had gone to Syria to join ISIS.

Last year, seven Malaysians believed to have joined ISIS were killed in Syria, where a civil war between the ruling regime and rebel groups, including ISIS, has raged since 2011. (***)

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