1. A 27-year-old Bangladesh national, Ahmed Faysal, was charged in court on 23 December 2021 for terrorism financing. He had reasonable grounds to believe that the transferred monies would, in part, benefit a terrorist entity, an offence under section 4(1)(b) punishable under Section 6A(a) of the Terrorism (Suppression of Financing) Act, Chapter 325 (TSOFA).
2. Ahmed Faysal had earlier been arrested under the Internal Security Act for terrorism-related activities and issued with an Order of Detention. Prior to his arrest, he had been working as a construction worker in Singapore since early 2017. He became radicalised in 2018 and was attracted to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria’s goal of establishing an Islamic caliphate in Syria. In mid-2019, Ahmed Faysal shifted his allegiance to Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), another militant group fighting to establish an Islamic caliphate in Syria. HTS is designated as a terrorist entity under the United Nations Security Council resolutions relating to the prevention and suppression of terrorism and terrorist financing[1].
3. A parallel investigation by the Commercial Affairs Department of the Singapore Police Force found that in 2020, Ahmed Faysal had allegedly transferred monies of up to S$891 on 15 occasions through online platforms, to fundraising campaigns for Syria-based organisations. He was aware that these monies could, either entirely or in part, be used to benefit the HTS’s cause in Syria. The act of providing money that one has reasonable grounds to believe will benefit terrorist entities, regardless of the amount and purpose, is a serious offence under the TSOFA.
4. If convicted and sentenced to imprisonment, the Order of Detention against Ahmed Faysal will be cancelled, and he will serve the sentence imposed by the Court. To prevent him from spreading his radical ideas to other inmates, he will be held separately whilst serving his prison sentence.
5. Terrorism and terrorism financing are grave threats to domestic and international security, and global action is required to deprive terrorist groups of funding and materials. Singapore is part of this global effort and is strongly committed to combating terrorism financing, regardless of whether the monies are used to facilitate terrorist acts locally or abroad.
6. Members of the public are reminded not to remit money of any amount; or provide any support through the provision of services, supplies, or any material to a terrorist organisation or for facilitating or carrying out any terrorist act. Anyone convicted of the offence of providing property and services for terrorist purposes shall be liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years, a fine not exceeding $500,000, or both. Anyone with information on such activities should inform the authorities promptly.
7. For those seeking to make donations to humanitarian causes, the Charity Portal (www.charities.gov.sg) provides information on Safer-Giving, which can help ensure that one’s donations are used for genuine charitable purposes.
[1] HTS was designated as a terrorist entity in the ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions List on or about 5 June 2018.
