In light of the recent decision of the House of Commons in the United Kingdom to bomb Syria, Dr Rohan Gunaratna of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) discusses the nature of terrorism, and how to combat it.

Paris 13 November 2015. An attack by gunmen affiliated to the Islamic State (IS) left 130 dead and hundreds wounded. In response, on 2 December the House of Commons in the United Kingdom voted 397 to 223 to begin bombing targets in Syria, which have already begun reports BBC News. At the same time, several mosques and prayer rooms were shut down in France, in the belief that they were contributing to radicalisation reports Today Online.

Europe is still reeling from the threat posed by IS, and every country that is part of the coalition to defeat the terror group is at risk of attack. This list includes Singapore. Should be we concerned?

Dr Rohan Gunaratna of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) is a world-respected specialist in counter terrorism. He is the head of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPTVR), and has researched and taught on counter terrorism strategies across the world. This includes the prestigious West Point Academy in the United States. In an interview with SIX-SIX.COM, he lays down what there is and isn’t to fear in the nation.

“Terrorist attacks are the biggest threat currently facing Singapore,” he says, “but there are no active terrorist cells within the country. The main concern is the immediate political neighbourhood, where 32 terrorist groups have pledged allegiance to IS.

“There are two types of threat,” he illustrates, “group terrorism, that is recognised groups forming an attack, and what we would call ‘home grown.’ These are self-radicalised individuals or cells, not officially affiliated with any known group.” When asked which would be the most dangerous, he points out that both are equally dangerous, but the self-radicalised are a more imminent threat.

“There have so far been a handful of Singaporeans who have travelled to Syria to join IS,” he points out, “and there will be more who do.”

Despite these rather alarming statistics, Dr Gunaratna insists that these fears are heavily mitigated by the security measures set in place by Singapore. “First, we have our border control. Singapore has the best border control system in South East Asia, and could even be a model for Europe and the United States.

“Secondly, Singaporeans and residents of Singapore are very good at being alert and vigilant. They are able to tell very easily if there are any indicators pointing to a potential attack.” For Dr Gunaratna, this is the most fundamental tool in combating terrorism.

He uses the example of Mehdi Nemmouche, a French national of Algerian origin, radicalised in prison, who killed four people outside the Jewish museum of Belgium in May 2014. Dr Gunaratna says that the man’s movements to Syria and South East Asia were well known and documented leading up to the attack. It would have been prevented had there been more alertness.

Dr Gunaratna does stress however the importance of both formal and informal education when it comes to training the population to be alert. “You must be alert without being alarmed!”

The third counter measure laid out is what he calls ‘soft power.’ This is reaching out to those who have either been radicalised and rehabilitating them as you would an addict, as well as inclusivity programs to at risk individuals. “Singapore has done a good job of integrating the Muslim community,” says Dr Gunaratna, “it is in the west that they have been far less successful.”

Dr Gunaratna also mentions a developing fourth measure of dealing with terrorism, which is communication and collaboration. “Singapore has been investing a lot in developing the counter-terrorist capabilities of its neighbours. It cannot defend itself just by building a wall around itself. It goes towards a greater collaboration; in a similar vein to the way Europe handles its security and counter-terrorists measures. Singapore needs its neighbours to be effective in their counter terrorist activities.”

Just how do countries deal with terrorists? There are many ways, Dr Gunaratna points out, but a tactic used by the United States is creating a hostile environment for terrorists and their sympathisers. This tactic is called countering violent extremism, or CVE. “Countries need to have laws in place to imprison terrorists and deal with them harshly, and be willing to do so.” However, this is only a tactic for when there is a known threat. Otherwise, preventative measures are preferred.

This is the main point that Dr Gunaratna wishes to impart. “If we do not make steps to include the Muslim community, to help them in this fight, because it is their fight, then the war is lost.”