SEA BARRIER “CRUCIAL” AGAINST ILLEGAL INTRUSIONS
The police also highlighted the importance of these floating sea barriers in deterring and preventing illegal intrusions, including those by terrorists, and the smuggling of prohibited goods and weapons into Singapore.
Sentosa’s tourist attractions and hotels, as well as its iconic status, make the island a “high value” target for terrorists planning a sea-based attack, said the police, drawing on the example of the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Ten Pakistani gunmen had travelled by boat from Karachi to Mumbai and over four days in November 2008, killed more than 160 people.
Forty illegal immigrants have been arrested over the last two years for attempting to enter Singapore via the sea, said the police.
In 2020, a boat tried to enter Singapore via the Changi shoreline but was impeded and slowed by the sea barriers near Changi Naval Base. This gave the police time to respond before the people on board could flee onshore after landing. Three persons, who turned out to be illegal immigrants, were arrested.