The nine were detained with a Malaysian last month because they were allegedly linked to an international terrorist network and posed a security threat. All 10 have been held under the Internal Security Act, which allows indefinite detention without trial.

Malaysia plans to extradite the suspects soon, said a Home Ministry official, who spoke on condition of anonymity citing protocol. The Home Ministry has been tightlipped to reveal any details.

Activists have said four of the detained men are from Syria, two are from Nigeria and one each from Yemen and Jordan. Jordanian and Syrian officials have confirmed the arrests.

Activists say police arrested the men with some 40 others while attending a weekly Islamic class with a Syrian university lecturer at a home near Kuala Lumpur on Jan. 21.

Most were later freed.

A senior Malaysian official has said the 10 were arrested to stem the growth of the hard-line Islamic Wahhabi sect often associated with Al-Qaeda, as they are believed to be followers of the sect.

He said the names of several of the foreigners also appeared on lists of terror suspects issued by various organizations and countries, including the United States.

Over the past 10 years, Malaysian authorities have detained more than 100 militant suspects. Most of them are alleged to be members of the Al-Qaeda-linked Southeast Asian network Jemaah Islamiyah, which is blamed for such attacks as the 2002 bombing on the Indonesian island of Bali that killed 202 people.

Most were released after authorities said they were rehabilitated. None was ever charged.