Anwar Ibrahim emphasised that the policy does not target Jews, but Israeli citizens [Getty]
Malaysia will not reverse its ban on Israeli citizens despite mounting pressure from US lawmakers, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has said, as analysts told The New Arab the row is unlikely to derail broader defence cooperation between the two countries.
Anwar’s remarks came after eight US lawmakers signed a letter urging Secretary of State Marco Rubio to suspend military cooperation with Malaysia over comments he made earlier this month pledging to deport any Israeli citizens found in the country.
“Malaysia is an independent country and we are free to voice our opinions,” Anwar was quoted by Malaysian media as saying.
“Therefore, while it does not stop them from making threats, I will firmly defend the rights of Malaysians and the decision made by the Malaysian people to remain steadfast in banning the presence of any Israeli citizens in Malaysia,” he said, stressing that the policy does not target Jews.
“We will continue to proceed with this policy and we will not allow Israeli citizens to set foot in Malaysia,” he added.
The letter, led by Democratic Congressmen Greg Landsman and Josh Gottheimer, called for International Military Education and Training (IMET) funding to Malaysia to be suspended and urged Washington to give Putrajaya 15 days to reverse its position.
“Malaysia’s refusal to recognise Israel is troubling enough. But it is totally unacceptable that a head of government has publicly declared that his country will hunt down and expel citizens of our close ally based solely on their nationality. It should not be underwritten by the American taxpayer,” the lawmakers wrote.
Speaking to The New Arab, Shahriman Lockman, Director of Special Projects at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia, said the dispute should be viewed in perspective.
“The potential risks to Malaysia-US defence cooperation should be taken seriously, but neither should they be overstated,” he said. “While some of them are genuinely prominent, none holds formal House Democratic leadership rank, and the letter carries no institutional weight beyond the signatories themselves.”
Shahriman noted that Malaysia conducts 14 bilateral and multilateral military exercises with the United States every year, more than with any other country.
“US assistance has been vital to improving Malaysia’s maritime domain awareness, from the provision of unmanned aerial systems to the modification of transport aircraft for maritime patrols. This letter comes from a self-selected bloc of pro-Israel Democrats, not a broad caucus position,” he added.
The lawmakers’ letter also criticised Malaysia’s longstanding engagement with Hamas, alleging the Palestinian group had trained on Malaysian soil.
“The Malaysian government welcomes terrorists while targeting Jews,” it said, referring to allegations previously reported in Israeli media.
Munira Mustaffa, Executive Director of the security consultancy Chasseur Group, told The New Arab that Malaysia’s position on Hamas reflects its longstanding non-aligned foreign policy.
“The US can claim Hamas is a terrorist organisation, but only because it views Hamas as one under its own designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) list,” she said. “That is a unilateral designation. Malaysia is not obligated to follow it, and Malaysia adheres to the UN Security Council’s list of designated terrorist groups.”
Anwar announced on 15 July that Malaysia would immediately deport any Israeli citizens found in the country following a public outcry over claims that members of a foreign tech nomad community were helping Israelis enter the country illegally.
Immigration authorities subsequently investigated the Network School community, finding that most members held valid travel documents, although officials said 19 people were unaccounted for and may have left the country illegally.
The Network School was ordered to close by local authorities in the southern state of Johor on Tuesday, appearing to bring the domestic controversy to an end.
