Three arrested in Malaysia on suspicion of KL attack

By P Prem Kumar

KUALA LUMPUR

Malaysian police have arrested three people, all suspected of planning an attack in the capital, Kuala Lumpur.

Friday's announcement followed overnight concerns from the United States and Australia, both of whom issued security alerts on their embassy websites citing information of a potential "terrorist" act in Kuala Lumpur.

The U.S. message warned citizens to avoid the area surrounding popular hawker street Jalan Alor.

National deputy police chief Noor Rashid Ibrahim said in a short statement that the detainees were a Malaysian, a Syrian and an Indonesian -- all arrested in a raid carried out by the police's Counter-Terrorism Division late Thursday.

He added that the trio were being held on a tip-off received from their global intelligence network.

Police said they believe that the suspects were involved in "terrorism", and had the intention to launch terror attacks on Malaysian soil.

They are being detained under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012.

News website the Malaysia Insider reported an anonymous police source as saying Thursday that credible information about a planned terror attack had emerged following the arrests of 10 suspected militants linked to Daesh.