What You Need to Know About Growing Extremist Violence in Bangladesh

Islamic extremists are targeting and killing bloggers, foreigners, atheists and gay-rights activists in Bangladesh. The country of 156 million people, poor and densely populated, has been profiled as a potential battle zone by an Islamic State magazine. Advocates for secularism expect the government to crack down on the violent extremists: “While condemning the blogger killings and promising action against the murderers, Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has also criticized those who speak out against religious belief,” report Nikhil Kumar and Rishi Iyengar for Time magazine. Political leaders fear losing support of religious parties while insisting that international terrorist groups like the Islamic State are not making inroads in Bangladesh. Analysts suggest that denial and failure to crack down on religious extremism only encourages more attacks. – YaleGlobal