(AFP) Several buildings, including the National Mosque, have become targets of hoax calls following the terrorist attacks in the United States, reports said today.

Three cases of bomb threats were reported yesterday, barely two days after thousands were evacuated from the 88-storey Petronas Twin Towers office block in Kuala Lumpur - Asia's answer to New York's devastated World Trade Center - following a bomb scare.

More than 1,000 employees in the Menara Tun Razak building in the Malaysian capital were evacuated yesterday after a woman called police to warn of a bomb planted in a bank office on the ground floor, The Sun said.

The National Mosque was also closed to public for several hours yesterday after a man called to say a bomb would go off at 2.00 pm.

In Penang, some 100 staff in a bank building were evacuated after four bomb threats were received. All three cases turned out to be the work of pranksters, the newspaper said.

On Wednesday, apart from the Petronas Twin Towers, the 23-storey IBM office building in Kuala Lumpur and three buildings in Penang were evacuated after a bomb scare.

No sympathy

Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has said foreigners were concerned about rising militancy in Malaysia and viewed it as a new centre for Islamic terrorism.

Abdullah was quoted by The Star today as saying the attacks on the US justified Malaysia's move to curb a local Islamic terrorist group and declared the situation in the country under control.

"The government does not want the country and its people to suffer when they become victims to this militant group. It is hoped that no quarter will show sympathy or support to any militant group in this country to terrorise the people," he added.

Ten people, including PAS members were detained under the Internal Security Act last month for their allaged involvement in the Malaysian Mujahiddin Group - accused of wanting to wage a "holy war" here.

Four Malaysians were also suspected of being behind a series of bombings in Indonesia.