Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Internal Security Deputy Minister Datuk Noh Omar clarified Monday that the group he mentioned Sunday being investigated by the authorities was a religious deviationist sect and not a militant group as reported in the media.
He said the sect was non-militant and had no connection with two militant groups -- Kumpulan Militan Malaysia (KMM) and Jemaah Islamiah (JI) -- whose network of cells were broken up by the government.
"I hope there will be no misunderstanding that a new militant group has surfaced in Malaysia," he told Bernama.
Media reports Monday quoted Noh as saying in Sungai Siput, Perak Sunday that the Internal Security Ministry had identified a new group that resembled the KMM and JI being active in the country.
"What I said (to reporters) was that a group was being investigated and whether it was necessary to act against it by using the Internal Security Act (ISA).
"The group is a sect and not militant, and it has no connection with the KMM or JI," he said.
Noh said he had to issue the clarification after he was shocked to see newspaper headlines reporting the emergence of a new militant group in Malaysia.
He also received many calls from various parties, including the foreign media, who wanted him to elaborate on his statement Sunday.