Malaysian nationals with a student status in Syria need not fear jail terms upon returning if they were not involved with the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group, Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said on Monday.
Hamidi reassured Malaysians in Syria that they could come home, and all they had to do was cooperate with police for questioning, the Malaysian Star reported.
"Police will question them, but they will be free to go once proven that they have had no involvement with militant groups," he said in parliament in response to concerns raised by an MP regarding the status of these nationals living in Syria.
The MP had voiced fears over Malaysian students in Syria who stayed back to finish their studies even after the government issued a notice calling for their return when the war began.
Hamidi expressed the hope that the education ministry would allow the students who had not yet finished their studies to complete their education at a Malaysian public university instead.
"The only condition is that the subjects they had taken have credit value, so they can do a credit transfer to finish their chosen courses here," he said.
According to official sources, 63 Malaysians are currently residing in Syria.
