Overseas attacks highlight a quieter but more complex terror risk for S-E Asia

News analysis

- Hariz Baharudin

Recent extremist incidents overseas, including a fatal attack in Australia and the disruption of an alleged plot in Germany, have raised fresh questions about whether terrorism is becoming harder to detect as it shifts towards lone-actor violence, with dangerous implications for Southeast Asia.

Even in the absence of signs showing organised extremist networks mobilising on the ground, the growing role of online radicalisation, often accelerated by global conflicts and social media, has complicated regional counter-terrorism efforts, analysts told The Straits Times.

Dr Noor Huda Ismail, a visiting fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, said the current phase of terrorism is "evolving" through new digital methods of radicalisation and outreach.

"The challenge today is not just security enforcement, but understanding how digital platforms and global events interact with personal vulnerabilities - and responding early before online anger turns into real-world violence," he said.

On Dec 14, a father-and-son duo opened fire at a Jewish festival at Sydney's Bondi Beach, killing 15 people and wounding 40 others.

The authorities described it as a targeted anti-Semitic attack.

The 50-year-old father was shot dead at the scene and his 24-year-old son was in critical condition under police guard. The pair are believed to have been influenced by terror group ISIS.

New South Wales Police said on Dec 17 that a man had been charged with 59 offences, including 15 counts of murder and 40 counts of wounding with attempt to murder.

Separately, the German authorities said they foiled a suspected extremist plot to attack a Christmas market in southern Bavaria, arresting five men on Dec 12 on suspicion of planning to ram a vehicle into a crowded market with the aim of killing or injuring as many people as possible.