Suspects arrested by Malaysia’s Special Counter-Terrorism Unit over alleged links to the now-defunct LTTE   By our defence correspondent Sri Lanka has sought details from Malaysia on LTTE suspects arrested during multiple raids recently amid fears the banned terrorist outfit is attempting to reorganise and regroup. The Sunday Morning learnt the Terrorist Investigation Division (TID) has sought information on the suspects arrested by Malaysia’s Special Counter-Terrorism Unit over alleged links to the now-defunct LTTE. The LTTE has been listed as a terrorist organisation in Malaysia since 2014. According to TID sources, information has been sought through Sri Lanka’s Foreign Affairs Ministry to verify if there were Sri Lankans among the suspects arrested over LTTE links. “We are yet to receive full details on the suspects arrested, so we are unable to verify if Sri Lankans are involved. However, as per the information received so far, almost all the suspects arrested in Malaysia are Malaysian,” TID sources said. However, the Department has not yet launched any investigations in Sri Lanka parallel to the incidents reported in Malaysia. According to reports from Malaysia, on 13 October, the Malaysian Police had arrested seven people on suspicion of supporting, promoting, recruiting, fundraising for, and possessing items linked to LTTE militants. Among them were two state lawmakers who had allegedly delivered speeches and distributed leaflets in support of the group at an event honouring LTTE heroes last year. Malaysia has been on high alert since January 2016, when gunmen allied with the Islamic State carried out a series of attacks in Jakarta, the capital of neighbouring Indonesia. The authorities arrested hundreds of people in the past few years for suspected militant links, including 25 people for activities linked to the Tamil Tigers. Following the arrest, the Malaysian Police also disclosed that financial transactions involving huge sums of money had been carried out, believed to activate the LTTE group in Malaysia. Recovery of ammunition Meanwhile, Sri Lanka’s law enforcement authorities had found a stock of military items including hand grenades, live ammunition, and explosives in a house of a former LTTE member in Kilinochchi on 13 October which raised concerns that the LTTE may be attempting to regroup in Sri Lanka. According to the Police, they had initially arrested a 36-year-old former LTTE member with a T-56 weapon and later when his house was searched, other military items were found. The suspect’s wife and sister were also taken into police custody. During the raid conducted by the Police, they recovered five hand grenades of different types, a stock of C-4 explosives, 230 live ammunition rounds of different types, one automatic rifle, one magazine, 62 detonators, a knife, GPS tracker, camera, binoculars, laptop, four mobile phones, and four t-shirts with prints of slain LTTE Chief Velupillai Prabhakaran. Further, two claymore mines weighing 15 kg each were recovered by the TID in a compound at Kondavil in Jaffna. Police Media Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekara said that that the claymore mines were found based on information provided by former LTTE cadre Joseph Peter Robinson, who was arrested by Army officers last Friday (11) in Serunuwara. Officers of Kilinochchi Police found several firearms, ammo, explosives, and other weapons when they searched his house in Kilinochchi on Saturday (12) after arresting him on Friday. The Police also arrested his wife and sister and handed them over to the TID for further investigations. The TID and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) have launched two separate investigations on the incident. Meanwhile, when contacted, Military Spokesman Brigadier Sumith Atapattu told The Sunday Morning that the Army was not involved in the investigations, which were being conducted by the Police. However, the Army assured that there was no threat of the LTTE’s re-emergence as per the information received by the Army. Highlighting the rehabilitated LTTE cadres, Brig. Atapattu said the Army had already rehabilitated and re-integrated around 12,000 former LTTE cadres and at present, those cadres were moving freely in society. When asked whether the Army is monitoring the conduct of those ex-LTTE cadres, Brig. Atapattu said at the beginning there was a programme, but it was abandoned because the Army wanted them to live freely. However, as explained by the Military Spokesman, the information of those ex-combatants was with the Ministry of Rehabilitation. Commenting on the LTTE activities in Malaysia, he stressed that the Army was involved in the investigations into to the incident reported in Malaysia and as per the information communicated to the Army, no connections were yet established on any involvement of Sri Lankans. Meanwhile, Defence Secretary Shantha Kottegoda told The Sunday Morning that investigations had already been launched by local law enforcement authorities in collaboration with the authorities in Malaysia to see whether there were any local connections. However, the Defence Secretary refused to reveal further details as it could affect the ongoing investigations. This year, India also extended the ban on the LTTE for violent and disruptive activities that are prejudicial to the integrity and sovereignty of the country. The Ministry of Home Affairs in India renewed its 2014 notification to declare the LTTE an “unlawful association” for another five years. Photo © Phnom Penh post