SINGAPORE: 2009 COUNTRY REPORTS ON TERRORISM

UNCLAS SINGAPORE 001224 SIPDIS STATE FOR S/CT - R. SHORE STATE ALSO FOR EAP/MTS - M. COPPOLA STATE PASS NCTC E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PTER ASEC EFIN KCRM KHLS AEMR SN SUBJECT: SINGAPORE: 2009 COUNTRY REPORTS ON TERRORISM REF: STATE 109980 ¶1. Embassy Singapore submits the following draft narrative for the 2009 Country Reports on Terrorism. Please note that requests for updated statistics for the first paragraph are pending with the government of Singapore. Post will submit that data separately. For purposes of this draft, we have used "XX" as a placeholder for such statistics. BEGIN TEXT Singapore continued its strong bilateral and multilateral counterterrorism intelligence and law enforcement cooperation. As of December, Singapore held in detention XX persons with links to terrorist groups. Detainees included members of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) who had plotted to carry out attacks in Singapore in the past and members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) (Note: Authorities may have released the remaining MILF detainee this year; this needs to be confirmed before we finalize this report. End Note). Under detention orders, the detainees were required to undergo a program of religious counseling with a group of volunteer religious counselors. Singapore enlisted the support of religious teachers and scholars to study JI's ideology, develop teachings to counter the group's spread within Singapore's Muslim community, and provide counseling to detainees. Religious counseling for detainees continues after release from detention. XX persons with links to terrorist groups were newly detained in 2009. Singapore released a total of XX persons in 2009, of which XX persons were released on Restriction Orders (RO) in 2009. Detainees released on ROs were monitored by the Singapore authorities and required to report to authorities on a regular basis. Singapore authorities determined that all XX persons released on ROs had cooperated in investigations and responded positively to rehabilitation, including religious counseling. Among those subjected to religious rehabilitation, there are no reported cases of recidivism to date. In April, Mas Selamat Kastari, the Singapore leader of JI, was recaptured by Malaysian authorities in Johor, Malaysia. Kastari had been a fugitive since his escape from detention in Singapore in February, 2008. Kastari remains in Malaysian custody. In June, Indonesian authorities captured two Singaporean JI fugitives, Husaini Ismail and Samad Subari. Husaini was ONE of five Singaporean JI members involved in a failed 2002 Kastari plot to hijack a commercial airliner and crash it into Singapore's Changi International Airport. All five JI members involved in the plot are now in custody, two in Singapore, ONE in Malaysia and two in Indonesia. A Singapore citizen was killed during the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India in November, 2008, the first Singapore casualty related to terrorism. When Singapore held its annual counterterrorism exercise, Northstar VII, in July 2009, the exercise simulated a series of coordinated, simultaneous Mumbai-style terrorist attacks on hotels and infrastructure in multiple locations throughout the city-state. Over 2,000 personnel from fifteen civilian and military organizations participated in the exercise, including the Special Operations Task Force, the Ministry of Defence, the Singapore Police Force, the Singapore Civil Defence Force, the Maritime and Port Authority and the Ministry of Transportation. Singapore hosted the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) Exercise Deep Sabre II October 27-30. Approximately 2000 personnel from 21 countries participated, representing military, diplomatic, legal, customs, immigration, police, and civil defense agencies. The multi-phase exercise included tabletop exercises, policy discussion, and boarding and port search demonstrations for Chemical/Biological/Radiological/Explosive (CBRE) materials. The exercise demonstrated Singapore,s multi-layered, multi-agency commitment to deny terrorists the ability to move people or materials in Singapore. Singapore makes extensive use of advanced sensor technology in this effort and during the PSI exercise, Singapore authorities demonstrated equipment and procedures used at entry checkpoints to scan all vehicles for CBRE. Authorities also demonstrated mobile scanners built into delivery truck platforms. Singapore utilizes isotope, gamma, neutron, and x-ray source detection equipment to scan for radiological materials that could be used by terrorists. Authorities require that all industrial vehicles carrying flammable materials be modified with GPS-tracking and remote ignition control as a condition to entry; Singapore security officials can then immediately disable any vehicles which exhibit unusual acceleration or which vary from approved routes. Authorities make extensive use of advanced biometrics to verify the identity of all individuals arriving into Singapore. The Royal Singapore Navy participated in the annual bilateral exercise "Cooperation Afloat Readiness And Training" (CARAT) with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard, and also the multilateral "South East Asia Cooperation Against Terrorism" (SEACAT) exercise. Singapore also conducted its own internal, annual exercise "APEX," which tests the government's multi-agency response to a maritime terrorism incident. In 2009 Singapore continued to contribute to the international community's efforts in Afghanistan, including military personnel stationed in Afghanistan supporting a weapons locating radar unit, a medical team, and an engineering team. Singapore is also involved in training Afghan civilians in various capacities, including HEALTH care, civil aviation, and water/waste management. END TEXT ¶2. Embassy POC is: Political Officer Dan Jassem. E-mail: JassemDP@State.gov. Office telephone: (65) 6476-9182. SHIELDS Visit Embassy Singapore's Classified website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eap/singapore/ind ex.cfm