Should Malaysia go to war over attempting to bring back fugitive financier Jho Low, it will lose both the war and Low, Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Nov. 7, according to Malaysiakini.

The Star reported Mahathir as saying: "We can go to war but we will lose the war and we will lose Jho Low. We are conscious that we are not a very strong nation. Sometimes people are nice to us, sometimes they are not, We have to accept (it)."

Mahathir did not name the country concerned though.

Inspector General of Police does not update him constantly

Mahathir said that the Malaysian government was still pursuing Low despite the obstacles it faced.

However, he also added that while he received updates from the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Abdul Hamid Bador, it was not constant.

Additionally, neither he nor Abdul spoke the same language on the matter.

In Mahathir's own words, according to The Star:

"The IGP said Jho Low was in Cyprus, but I do not speak the same language as IGP. IGP is the IGP. If you give me all these (police) medals on my shoulder, I would speak like the IGP.

He has told me where he has found him. I would not know but it is not every time when he knows where Jho Low is supposed to be and he rings me up. Once in a while, he tells me."

Rumours of Low's whereabouts

Mahathir further stated that he had been told many rumours about Low, which made it difficult to track him down, Malaysiakini highlighted.

These included Low carrying several passports and undergoing alterations to his face.

Mahathir said: "All these things are rumours, I have no proof. But it could happen and that makes it difficult for us to trace him."

So where is Low now?

It is unclear where Low is at the moment, but he is believed to be currently in China.

Malaysiakini quoted Abdul as stating that the police were aware of the country hosting Low and that it was currently refusing to cooperate with Malaysia.

Mahathir added, however, that he had been told by Abdul that Low was not in Cyprus, after the Financial Times (FT) reported on Nov. 5 that Low had been granted a Cypriot passport in September 2015.

At that time, Low had also bought a property worth €5 million (S$7.5 million) on the island's resort town of Ayia Napa.

The Star reported that Cyprus has since confirmed its revocation of Low's passport.

Low has agreed to give up nearly US$1 billion (S$1.36 billion) in assets related to his involvement in the 1MDB case, under a deal with the United States Department of Justice (DOJ).

Assets recovered include:

• High-end real estate in Beverly Hills, New York, and London.
• Other assets in Switzerland and the UK.
• Other business investments.

Top image collage from Mahathir Mohamad Facebook and Jho Low Facebook