Kuala Lumpur, Aug 25: Malaysian security forces have managed to foil at least four attempts by terrorists from neighbouring Philippines and Indonesia to enter the eastern Sabah state, including a possible attempt by Jemaah Islamiyah bombmaker Fathur Rohman al-Ghozi, reports said today.
''I am happy and contented that we are able to deter these armed groups from slipping into our country and posing a threat to the nation,'' said Deputy Defence Minister Shafie Apdal.

Shafie said the terrorists were on the run from authorities in their home countries, adding that their attempts to sneak in were foiled due to increased security and patrols at coastal waters of Sabah.
''They could be seeking shelter or passage to other target points in the region,'' he was quoted as saying by the Star newspaper.
Police believe that al-Ghozi, who escaped from a Philippine prison last month, is one of the many militants who tried to enter Malaysia.



Al-Ghozi, who had been serving a 17-year jail term for explosives possession, had admitted to plotting anti-west attacks in Singapore.



JI, a shadowy group bent on creating an Islamic state across Southeast Asia, is accused of carrying out the Bali bomb blasts in October last year, and more recently the JW Marriott Hotel bombing in Jakarta.



The Malaysian government has arrested some 90 suspected militants since early 2001, many of whom were suspected members of JI.


Bureau Report