International Crisis Group has called the 1 July Dhaka attack the most visible manifestation yet of the threat that a new generation of self-styled jihadis poses to Bangladesh that boasts of its pluralistic society.
Referring to premier Sheikh Hasina’s resolve ‘to bring all terrorists to justice’, the Brussels-based group questioned if this was “finally a wake-up call for a government that has too often underplayed the radical Islamist threat”.
In an article titled “Bangladeshi Leaders Must Stop Politicising Counterterrorism” published in Nikkei Asian Review on 6 July, ICG’s Shehryar Fazli wrote that the Islamic State group was quick to claim credit, posting pictures of the bodies on social media to ensure maximum shock and anguish.
He also pointed out that skeptical experts and officials, however, have pointed to the likely involvement of local sympathisers or affiliates of rival al-Qaida in the Indian subcontinent, or AQIS.
“Whatever the investigations reveal, the government’s primary challenge will be to tackle local Islamic State supporters and AQIS,” insisted the author.
The article referred to the government’s crackdown in June, responding to domestic criticism and international concern, when some 14,000 people were arrested. “But civil society groups have alleged massive police extortion and abuse, and the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Jamaat-i-Islami claim their activists have been the primary targets.”
ICG official expressed his conviction that the government’s “preoccupation with suppressing political opposition and dissent has certainly helped to create an environment for groups like Ansarul Islam and JMB to grow”.
“The Holey Artisan Bakery attack shows how little the weeklong crackdown managed to achieve,” it added.
ICG cautioned that heavy-handed, indiscriminate and politicised police and paramilitary operations are not only likely to fail but will also breed more resentment against the state.
“It [government] should not, as in the past, turn the threat into a partisan issue,” said the ICG referring to the government’s reactions after the Dhaka attack.
“As the government increasingly closes off legitimate avenues of dissent, this zero-sum rivalry with its mainstream opponents has so far yielded a single winner: violent extremists,” observed the ICG article.