Singapore security officials have arrested a 20-year-old serviceman for planning to carry out an attack on Jews outside a local synagogue.
Amirull Ali targeted Maghain Aboth Synagogue and had planned to travel to the Gaza Strip to join the military wing of Hamas, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, said Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in a news release on Wednesday. He was detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA).
Ali was arrested on Feb. 5 while still serving in the Singapore Armed Forces, according to local media reports. An ISA detention order was issued against him on March 5.
As part of his plot to stab Jews in front of the Maghain Aboth Synagogue, Ali apparently studied how to use a knife to cause massive bleeding. Reports say he even made two reconnaissance trips to the synagogue.
The Maghain Aboth Synagogue was built in the 1870s and is believed to be the oldest synagogue in East Asia.
In a tweet on Wednesday, Jewish Agency of Israel chairman Isaac Herzog noted that Jewish communities around the world must be vigilant.
“Today, it was revealed that a serious terror attack on a synagogue in Singapore was averted a month ago. Last Friday, a terror attack on a school in Marseille was averted. I call on world leaders to understand that anti-Semitism is likely to increase as restrictions on travel are lifted and to instruct their law enforcement to be on higher alert.
“The Jewish Agency will continue operating to increase security for Jewish communities around the world through our Security Assistance Fund,” he added.
