Singapore's Growing Threat: Far-Right Extremism Among Youth

An 18-year-old Singaporean student, Nick Lee Xing Qiu, was detained for radicalisation by far-right extremism. Idolizing the Christchurch mosque attacker, he planned a race war. Detained under the ISA, he had no immediate attack plans, highlighting the rising concern of far-right extremism among youths in Singapore.

An 18-year-old Singaporean student, ensnared by far-right extremism online, has been detained under the Internal Security Act, the government announced.

Nick Lee Xing Qiu, described as an "East Asian supremacist," allegedly fantasized about igniting a "race war" between Chinese and Malays in Singapore. The Internal Security Department (ISD) disclosed these details in a statement on Monday, emphasizing that there was no immediate threat at the time of Lee's arrest.

Since December, Lee has been held under the ISA, which permits detention without trial for up to two years. His radicalization journey reportedly began in 2023, spurred by extremist content on social media, later idolizing the Christchurch mosque attacker. The ISD stressed the global concern over far-right extremism, particularly among impressionable youths.