• AQIS emphasizes allegiance to Ayman al Zawahiri, Taliban in new ‘code of conduct’

    Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) has released a 20-page code of conduct outlining its approach to waging jihad throughout the region. The group says its men are currently fighting “shoulder-to-shoulder” with the Taliban and calls on Muslims in the surrounding countries to pledge allegiance to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (another name for the Taliban).

    AQIS emphasizes allegiance to Ayman al Zawahiri, Taliban in new ‘code of conduct’
  • US military kills AQIS leaders, fighters in southern Afghanistan

    Usama Ibrahim was a member of al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent’s top leadership body and the chief of Al Sahab Media, al Qaeda’s official media production arm. Tariq Bhai was AQIS’ “head of Bangladeshi Affairs.”

    US military kills AQIS leaders, fighters in southern Afghanistan
  • Islamic State says it singled out non-Muslims for death in Dhaka attack

    The tactic of separating Muslims from non-Muslims and then executing the latter, which was pioneered by al Qaeda, has not been used by the Islamic State in the past.

    Islamic State says it singled out non-Muslims for death in Dhaka attack
  • Terrorists assault cafe in Bangladesh’s capital

    The Islamic State’s Amaq News Agency has claimed responsibility for today’s attack on a cafe in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The claim still needs to be verified, but the jihadist threat inside Bangladesh has steadily grown over the past two years.

    Terrorists assault cafe in Bangladesh’s capital
  • US adds Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent, leader to terrorism list

    The US government and intelligence services have consistently underestimated the strength of AQIS, which is an official branch of al Qaeda that is based in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh.

    US adds Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent, leader to terrorism list
  • Bangladesh

    Bangladesh Islamist Party Chief Sentenced to Death

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Police have arrested UK citizen Samiun Rahman a.k.a. Ibn Hamdan, who arrived in Bangladesh in February to recruit fighters from Bangladesh and Myanmar for the Islamic State and for the Al Nusrah Front. Hamdan had fought in Syria in late 2013 and had also gone to Mauritania and Morocco. His arrest followed the arrest of two of his recruits. Police said Hamdan “also had a mission to open branches in Bangladesh and Myanmar as per al Qaeda supremo Ayman al Zawahiri’s recent announcement on the launching of al Qaeda in Indian subcontinent.” Five university students who are members of the…

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Clashes erupt in Bangladesh after top Islamist is spared death sentence

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Bangladesh executed Abdul Kader Mullah, a senior Jamaat-e-Islami leader who was convicted of war crimes committed during the 1971 war for independence from Pakistan. Four other leading figures in the party have also been convicted, but Mullah is the first to have been executed. Jamaat-e-Islami has warned it will avenge his death, and called for a general strike on Dec. 15; at least three JI activists were killed in clashes with police.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    The war crimes tribunal convicted in absentia and sentenced to death two former leaders of the Al-Badr force, a subgroup of the Jamaat-e-Islami that was involved in the kidnapping, torture, and execution of over 200 Bangladeshi intellectuals during the country’s war of independence from Pakistan in 1971. One of the men, Chowdhury Mueen Uddin, a founder of the Muslim Council of Britain and now a UK citizen, serves as a trustee of Muslim Aid in London. The other man, Ashrafuzzaman Khan, now a US citizen, became chief of a New York branch of Islami Circle of North America. Neither of…

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    A war crimes tribunal sentenced Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, a top member of the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, to death after convicting him of torture, rape, and genocide during the war with Pakistan in 1971. The defense plans to appeal.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    The Supreme Court sentenced Jamaat-e-Islami leader Abdul Kader Mullah to death, rejecting an appeal against the the life sentence handed down in February by a war crimes tribunal. The Jamaat-e-Islami, which was banned in July, has called for a nationwide strike tomorrow.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Four Bangladeshi bloggers who claim to be atheists have been charged with defaming Islam and face prison sentences of up to seven years. About 200 activists from Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, clashed with police in Rajshahi; at least 10 people were injured, including a journalist. Another Shibir protest was foiled in Dhaka.

    Bangladesh
  • India

    Fresh Myanmar clashes signal growing Muslim desperation

    India
  • Bangladesh

    Canada said it would close its embassy in Dhaka on Sunday, Aug. 4, as a security precaution. Local Government and Rural Development Minister Syed Ashraful Islam said that even though the high court has ruled that the registration of the Jamaat-e-Islami party was illegal, the government has no plans to ban the party, and the party can legalize its registration if certain conditions are met.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    The high court in Dhaka ruled that the Jamaat-e-Islami party is illegal because it is against secularism. The decision, which the JI plans to appeal, would prevent the Islamist party from slating candidates in the general election early next year.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    The country’s war crimes tribunal sentenced Jamaat-e-Islami politician Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid to death. Mujahid led a militia responsible for the deaths of intellectuals and other leaders who supported the country’s independence from Pakistan; as many as 3 million people are said to have died during the nine-month war of secession. At least two people were killed in clashes with police as thousands demonstrated against the life sentence imposed on Jamaat leader Ghulam Azam.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    The country’s war crimes tribunal sentenced 91-year-old Ghulam Azam, former head of the Jaamat-e-Islami, to life in prison for genocide and crimes against humanity during the 1971 war for independence from Pakistan. In its ruling, the court called Jaamat a “criminal organization” and suggested that “no such anti-liberation people should be allowed to sit at the helm of executives of the government, social or political parties, including government and non-government organisations.” Jamaat, the country’s main Islamist party, called a daylong strike, and supporters clashed with police in Dhaka, Chittagong, Rajshahi, Comilla, Bagerhat, and Barishal.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    A court sentenced 10 members of the banned Islamist group Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) to death for assisting with a suicide bombing at a lawyers’ association office in Gazipur in 2005 that killed nine people and injured at least 100 more. JMB founder Sheikh Abdur Rahman and five other leaders of the group were hanged in March 2007 after a government crackdown.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Behind the rise of Bangladesh’s Hifazat

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    The death toll from clashes between rioting Islamist protesters and police around Dhaka has risen to 45, including five policemen. Hundreds of people have been injured during the protests, which began several days ago but are now said to have largely subsided. Security has been beefed up in the capital and around major mosques across the country.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    As many as 200,000 Islamist protesters blocked roads into the capital of Dhaka, demanding the adoption of a blasphemy law. Clashes between police and rioting protesters killed at least three people and injured 60 more. The protest was organized by the newly-formed radical group Hifazat-e-Islam, which wants the death penalty for anyone who defames Islam. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said the government has implemented many of the protesters’ demands and is working on others, and noted the arrest of four bloggers for comments against the Prophet Muhammad.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    The country’s war crimes tribunal indicted British Muslim leader Chowdhury Mueen-Uddin for crimes against humanity and genocide during the 1971 war with Pakistan. He is alleged to have helped organize the killing of the top intellectuals in Bangladesh. He is an influential figure in British Muslim circles and helped set up the Muslim Council of Britain. A warrant has been issued for his arrest. Also indicted today on the same charges was US citizen Ashrafuzzaman Khan, who is believed to be in New York.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Islamist agitation fuels unrest in Bangladesh

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Hard-Line Muslim Rally Demands Anti-Blasphemy Laws in Bangladesh

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Over 100,000 Islamists marched to the capital city of Dhaka demanding the death of several bloggers for allegedly defaming Islam. The rally was organized by the Hefajat-e-Islam, which is calling for the enactment of a blasphemy law. Four bloggers were arrested earlier this week on charges of hurting Islamic religious sentiment, and the government has begun monitoring social media for blasphemy.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Police arrested a Jamaat-e-Islami official for inciting recent attacks on Hindus and temples in Chittagong. Court testimony implicated Harakat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami leader Mufti Abdul Hannan in the Bamna Ratamul bombings in 2001 that killed 10 people; five of the 14 suspects in the case remain at large.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Protesters from Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Chhatra Shibir vandalized a patriotic monument in Rangpur, continuing their violent campaign across the country; over 50 people have been killed since Feb. 28. An intelligence official warned of Islamist terror threats in Dhaka. The opposition BNP party, a Jamaat ally, plans to set up countrywide “committees for public safety” to protect the opposition movement.

    Bangladesh
  • Bangladesh

    Bangladesh deaths rise as Jamaat protest strike begins

    Bangladesh