Is Malaysia's Top ISIS Recruiter Dead?

Malaysia's top recruiter for the Islamic State, a man responsible for the country's only ISIS-linked terrorist attack, was allegedly killed in a drone strike in Syria over the weekend, according to reports in local media. But the source of the news—his wife—has left some Malaysian authorities to question whether Muhammad Wanndy Mohamed Jedi is actually dead.

"We are suspicious of this report," National Police Chief Khalid Abu Bakar told the Malaysian news site TODAY.

Wanndy's wife, a 28-year-old Malaysian woman named Nor Mahmudah Ahmad, posted news of her husband's death on Facebook last Saturday, writing, "My dear fighter, finally it's your time to go. I will remain here and take care of the responsibilities you have left behind… Although my heart has not been as strong as I expected, I accept it as fate." Her husband, Wanndy, reportedly died in a drone strike in Raqqa, Syria, according to the Facebook post.

But Malaysian authorities remain skeptical. An anonymous source who monitors the activities of Malaysians living in ISIS-held territories told the New Straits Times that there was something off about the Facebook post.

"There is still suspicion about the posting," the source said. "Some of the words used in the posting are not commonly used by his wife previously. They do not match her style of writing."

Authorities are now questioning whether the whole thing is a ruse meant to throw investigators off Wanndy's trail. The terrorist has been the subject of much media attention in Malaysia and Singapore since he first appeared alongside another Malaysian national two years ago in an ISIS beheading video.

Since then, Wanndy has been active on social media and the messaging app Telegram, where he tried to recruit new members and provide support for terrorists plotting attacks in Malaysia. He was linked to a 2016 grenade attack on a nightclub in suburban Selangor that left eight injured. It was the first, and only, ISIS-backed terrorist attack in Malaysia.

Wanndy claimed on social media to be an active fighter in ISIS, sharing images of his bullet-riddled car after accidentally crossing into territory controlled by the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and a photo of himself holding the dismembered head of a dead PKK fighter. He was named a target of interest by the US government.

But a recent report by Channel News Asia said that Wanndy was more of a security guard than a fighter. "His reputation on the Internet is much bigger than what he actually does in Syria," said a Malaysian businessman, quoting a conversation he had with his daughter, who currently lives is ISIS-controlled Syria.

And his reputation among ISIS leaders as a man who could get things done in Malaysia was falling to pieces, according to a Malaysian intelligence source quoted by The Star. The source told the news site that ISIS leaders were "infuriated" with his inability to carry out planned attacks in Malaysia. Wanndy was reportedly given until the end of the year to successfully pull off a major attack in Malaysia and find new supporters in this Muslim-majority nation.

He was also tasked with convincing Malaysians currently living under ISIS control to remain after more than 50 of them lost faith in the self-proclaimed caliphate and planned to return home. Wanndy was reportedly offering the disillusioned militants cash bonuses to remain in Syria, but he was having little luck.

"They have lost faith and have rejected cash offers from him to stay," according to one intelligence official.

As many as 90 Malaysian nationals have left the country to join ISIS since 2013, according to some estimates.