Bangladesh Confronts Growing Militancy Threat

A recent United Nations Security Council report has raised concerns about al-Qaida's efforts to establish cells in Bangladesh, prompting a surge in media coverage and heightened police alertness.

The report, released on August 10, noted that al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) is trying to exploit Bangladesh to establish cells there. This has triggered a wave of media attention in Bangladesh, with several news outlets drawing attention to Muslim radicalism in the country.

In response, the police have instructed field-level officers to remain on high alert. This move comes as the Bangladesh Police have pointed to an upsurge in militant activities in the country in recent months.

## Militancy in Bangladesh: A Complex Landscape

Bangladesh's response to militancy has been marked by extremes. The Sheikh Hasina regime has been accused of securitizing dissent, using the threat of Islamist terrorism to marginalize the opposition and crack down on dissent.

In the two years since the ouster of the Hasina regime in August 2024, Bangladesh's response to militancy has been confused, oscillating between denial and exaggerated responses. Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed has publicly insisted that militancy "no longer exists in the country," while the police have issued alerts warning of imminent attacks.

## The Rise of AQIS in Bangladesh

Broadly, Bangladesh's terrorist landscape has comprised three streams: the Taliban-inspired Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), the Islamic State-affiliated Neo-JMB, and al-Qaida-linked Ansar Al Islam (AAI). While JMB recruits are largely Qwami madrasa students, Neo-JMB and AAI have drawn their recruits largely from urban educated youths.

There are operational differences as well. While JMB and AAI target secular bloggers and Sufi shrines, Neo-JMB has attacked foreigners, mainly Westerners, describing them as crusaders or Christians.

## AQIS's Four-Part Doctrine

The clearest articulation of AQIS's post-2024 strategy came from Ustadh Usama Mahmood, in a statement issued through As-Sahab Media addressed to Bangladesh's "religious community" after Hasina's ouster in August 2024. He laid out what amounts to a four-part doctrine: embracing mass preaching as the primary vehicle, building capability for resistance and revolution, using that capability to pressure the state into reform from outside, and avoiding entering government altogether.

## The Risk of Individual Dissent

The danger feels more immediate in the case of individual dissent. Between 2013 and 2016, AQIS's Bangladeshi affiliates built their reputation by targeting atheist bloggers, secular publishers, and academics. Amid AQIS's renewed confidence in post-2024 Bangladesh, the risk is that critics of religious orthodoxy, and minority rights advocates could once again face intimidation - even if the country does not see a return to mass-casualty attacks.

### The Current State of Militant Groups in Bangladesh

| Group | Description | | --- | --- | | JMB | Taliban-inspired, targets secular bloggers and Sufi shrines | | Neo-JMB | Islamic State-affiliated, attacks foreigners, mainly Westerners | | AAI | Al-Qaida-linked, targets secular bloggers and Sufi shrines |

### The AQIS Doctrine

| Part | Description | | --- | --- | | 1 | Embracing mass preaching as the primary vehicle | | 2 | Building capability for resistance and revolution | | 3 | Using that capability to pressure the state into reform from outside | | 4 | Avoiding entering government altogether |