Malaysia to detain Mas Selamat for two years

An Islamic militant described as Singapore's most wanted man has been detained under Malaysian security laws for a two-year term, state media reported Wednesday.

"(He) will be detained for two years under the ISA in the Kamunting detention camp," it quoted an unnamed source familiar with his capture as saying.

Mr Najib said Malaysian authorities needed to extract "more information" from Mas Selamat and downplayed suggestions that Singaporean authorities would be anxious to have him in their custody. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak described him as a "threat to national security" and said he was being held for two years "to know more information".

"While under detention, Mas Selamat will be undergoing a rehabilitation programme which will include debating with religious experts on Islam," said the sources.

Mas Selamat, a Singaporean citizen of Indonesian origin, is alleged to have plotted to crash a hijacked plane into Singapore's international airport.

Indonesian authorities arrested him on immigration violation charges in 2003.

He was handed over to Singapore in 2006 and detained in a high-security prison.

But he escaped in February 2008, managing to squeeze through the toilet window and climb over a fence while guards waited outside.

He evaded a massive manhunt and slipped into Malaysia by swimming across a narrow strip of sea that separates the two countries.

He was detained in a joint operation between Malaysia and Singapore in Malaysia's southern Johor state on 1 April.

To find out more at CNA and BBC.