Singapore cancels work permits of 2 Bangladeshis for extremist posts on social media

The work permits of two Bangladeshi workers in Singapore were cancelled after they made extremist posts on social media and were investigated by the Internal Security Department (ISD) in July.

On 17 July, ISD told The Straits Times Md Risad Tayani, 25, and Sahedul Islam, 37, have been repatriated to Bangladesh.

An ISD spokeswoman said the pair were separately investigated in July for their extremist posts.

In his posts, Risad expressed support for Bangladeshi radical Islamist writer Shafiur Rahman Farabi, who has incited violence against secular and atheist bloggers.

Farabi is also allegedly linked to Hizb ut-Tahrir, a fundamentalist Islamist group banned by the Bangladeshi government.

As for Sahedul, ISD said he made inflammatory posts on the Israel-Iran conflict, and also posted divisive religious views referring to Muslims who do not want to be governed under Islamic law as infidels.

The duo is not connected to any cases previously announced by the ISD concerning self-radicalised individuals who were dealt with under the Internal Security Act.

The spokeswoman said ISD’s investigations did not find any indication the men intended to conduct any terrorist attacks or were involved in terrorism activities in Singapore.

“However, their extremist and divisive views are inimical to Singapore’s multiracial and multi-religious society,” she said.

The pair worked in the construction industry in Singapore.

Earlier, after the duo arrived at Dhaka's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on 8 July, officers of the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Bangladesh Police took them into custody after being alerted by immigration authorities.

The following day, a Dhaka court placed the two men on a two-day remand for interrogation.