Southeast Asia could “pay the price” of Islamic State supporters seeking to exploit the persecution of the Rohingya Muslim minority, Malaysia’s defence minister has warned.

Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin cautioned that Isil, who have been seeking to establish a bigger foothold in the region, could use the current crisis to recruit members of the Rohingya community who were left “vulnerable and without a choice.”

“We cannot leave them (the Rohingya) desperate and wanting, because if they are and they turn to these groups, countries in this region would have to pay the price,” he said, according to the New Straits Times.