Malaysian authorities have detained three suspected jihadis as they were about to board a flight to Turkey from where they would enter Syria to join the Islamic State (IS) Sunni radicla group, media reported Friday.
An architect, a technician and a shopkeeper were detained at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport by members of the Bukit Aman Special Branch Counter Terrorism Division Thursday, The Malaysian Star reported.
Also Thursday, Foreign Minister Anifah Aman, who was at the UN Security Council meeting in New York, said Malaysia would strengthen its laws and counter-terrorism capabilities.
Police said the architect was from Pahang and the technician from Perlis, both aged 26.
The 42-year-old shop owner is from Kelantan and is believed to be married with six children.
"Initial investigations revealed that the suspects were planning to board a flight to Istanbul, which transited in Doha," a police official said.
"From Turkey, these men were planning to book a passage into Syria where they would join the IS terror group."
He said that prior to the arrests, the police raided the homes of the suspects without their knowledge and discovered, among other evidence, an IS flag.
"We believe these men were recruited by Malaysian militants via social media sites, such as Facebook," the official added.
He said the police were closing in on the individual responsible for recruiting the men.
The arrests raise the number of Malaysian militants held by the Counter Terrorism Division to 22 in the country since April 28.
Police are now on the hunt for militants believed to be linked to the IS and the Abu Sayyaf, a terror group based in the Philippines.
