SINGAPORE - Suspected terrorists arrested in Singapore were planning to cripple military and other crucial targets as part of a plan to overthrow the Malaysian government and create an Islamic state there, the Singapore government said yesterday.

It was to be the first step towards their ultimate goal of creating an Islamic state covering Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, the southern Philippines island of Mindanao and Brunei, the government said in a report backgrounding the arrest of 21 suspected terrorists last month.

Most were from the same Jemaah Islamiah (JI) organisation as 13 other suspected terrorists arrested last December.