A team of 200 policemen, under orders from the Deputy Prime Minister Musa Hitam, laid siege to kampung (village) houses in Memali, near Baling in Kedah.

The Memali Incident followed severely strained relationships between UMNO and PAS, two major political parties in Malaysia.

In Besut, Terengganu for example, communities were split to the extent that communal prayers were done separately for UMNO and for PAS congregations.

The police wanted to arrest Ibrahim Mahmud under the Internal Security Act, for creating discord and disharmony, but he refused to give himself up.

Ibrahim attended Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan Weng in Baling before furthering his studies in Islamic studies at Sekolah Agama Ittifaqiah, Kg Carok Putih, Weng and later Pondok Al-Khariah, Pokok Sena, Seberang Perai.

Thirty-six persons involved in the incident were arrested under the Internal Security Act in January 1986 but later released in June.

[3] The government published a white paper[1] and showed an official video recording of the incident on national television.

The White Paper on the incident said the extremists tried to spread deviationist teachings and disrupt public order.

[8] The video showed villagers armed with parangs, slingshots and Molotov cocktails taunting and protesting the actions of the Federal Reserve Unit troopers.

[citation needed] PAS was concerned over plans to air the video clip as it may have implications on a pending court case involving the families of those killed in the incident.

Kamaruzaman Yusoff views that the "Memali Incident entailed the interpretation and materialisation of the concepts of jihād and syahid.

"[16] At the time of the incident, media reported Dr. Mahathir Mohamad was away on a visit to China, and identified Musa as the Acting Prime Minister.

PAS through Harakah had urged generous donations to the fund to help the families of Ibrahim and his men which the party regarded as martyrs.