ALBAWABA - Ian Miles Cheong's name has been trending on social media, especially on X (formerly known as Twitter), but who is he and why he is taking over the platforms?
Ian Miles Cheong is a Malaysian influencer who is known for his ultimate "admiration" of the United States, and the West despite that he never went there.
"A Malaysian Obsessed With The West," a social media user described Ian Miles Cheong. Chelong is a right-wing blogger who was born and raised in Malaysia.
What's the deal with Ian Miles Cheong?
Daily Dot reported that Cheong has been a huge defender of Israel's right to exist as well as its right to self-defense after Hamas' Al-Aqsa Flood operation on Oct. 7.
A while ago, many pro-Palestinian activists slammed Cheong over his pro-Israel posts on X and circulated a screenshot of an old post shared by the influencer, "What you’re seeing now in Israel would happen every day if not for the IDF," and that "Israel has a right to exist and a right to defend itself."
The post appears to be deleted on his X account at the current time, despite that it was archived on Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine.
Moreover, Cheong didn't answer a question about whether the posts were true or if he’d deleted them.
On the other hand, the Malaysian influencer told the New Straits Times that he wasn't "pro-Israel," defending that his views on the conflict were "very nuanced contrary to the regurgitated baseless claims about my past from unreliable far left-wing and transgender sources who have been literally trolling me for years due to my conservative views."
Why is Ian Miles Cheong trending?
Many took to social media and shared posts online claiming and allegedly saying that Ian Miles Cheong was executed by the Malaysian government over his pro-Israel stance.
An X user, named Kristi Yamaguccimane, allegedly posted: "Ian Miles Cheong has been executed by the Malaysian government at the order of Anwar Ibrahim for his continued online support of Israel’s offensive in the Gaza Strip. He was 35 years old."
The post by Yamaguccimane has gone viral with over 4 million views as well as dozens of thousands of reposts and likes.
However, following rumors shared online, Ian Miles Cheong reshared a post by Mario Nawfal in which he wrote denying the allegation of Cheong's death: "Ian (@stillgray) IS STILL ALIVE AND WELL
What low disgusting misinformation this is…
Source: Ian"
Malaysia's stance on the Palestinian cause and Israeli war in Gaza
According to Reuters, Malaysia doesn’t have formal diplomatic relations with Israel. But Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim joined a pro-Palestine rally in 2023 and refused to "bow to Western pressure" by rejecting Hamas.
In addition to that, Malaysian police arrested last December a 36-year-old man, who said the country should start diplomatic ties with Israel in an interview on TikTok.
