As Southeast Asia faces a resurgence of terrorism under the blood-soaked brand of the Islamic State (IS), the region needs to takes to take a deep breath -- and resist the urge to panic. Despite the fact no rockets or even designs for one were actually found, the "Foiled Rocket Attack" headlines were entirely predictable. Not least of these is that most security and intelligence services are both experienced and vigilant. Secondly, the degree of attention accorded to Southeast Asia by the IS leadership is questionable. But even before that, there was no evidence that planning and supporting attacks in Southeast Asia was a priority on the level of cost-effective, high-impact operations in politically and strategically important regions, notably Europe, Turkey or the wider Middle East.

Source: Bangkok Post September 21, 2016 22:07 UTC