Tag Archives: Islamic extremism

Kyrgyzstan vs Myanmar football match cancelled

SEPT. 4 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kyrgyzstan cancelled a football match with Myanmar because of what it described as terror threats. The inference from the Kyrgyz authorities was that Myanmar’s treatment of its Muslim Rohingya minority meant the team was vulnerable to an attack. Myanmar is a predominantly Buddhist country. Last year a suspected Uighur extremist drove a car bomb into the Chinese embassy in Bishkek.

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(News report from Issue No. 342, published on Sept. 7 2017)

Uzbek authorities take 16,000 people off terror blacklist

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SEPT. 2 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — The authorities in Uzbekistan have removed 16,000 people from a blacklist of 17,000 people with alleged links to extremist groups, media reported. Analysts said the move was another attempt by Pres. Shavkat Mirziyoyev to pursue more liberal policies and to create a clear departure from Islam Karimov, who ruled the country as an authoritarian dictator.

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(News report from Issue No. 342, published on Sept. 7 2017)

Georgian man killed fighting for IS in Syria

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AUG. 28 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — Georgian media reported that a 31-year-old man from the Pankisi Gorge has been killed fighting for IS in Syria. The Pankisi Gorge is a majority Muslim area of Georgia. At least 26 people from Georgia have died in Syria and Iraq since 2012.

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(News report from Issue No. 342, published on Sept. 7 2017)

Tajikistan confirms death of former police relatives

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JULY 5 2017 (The Bulletin) — The authorities in Tajikistan said that police had fought and killed four relatives of former Tajik police commander Gulmurod Halimov who joined IS in Syria in 2015. They said that the four relatives, two of Halimov’s brothers and two cousins, were involved in a gunfight with police on July 4 in the Vosa district, 25km from Dushanbe. Reports do not clarify what triggered the gunfire.

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(News report from Issue No. 336, published on July 16 2017)

US embassy warns Tajikistan

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JUNE 16 2017 (The Bulletin) — The US Embassy in Dushanbe said that the chances of a terrorist attack in Tajikistan had increased over the past six to 12 months. It said: “A range of terrorist organizations might seek to conduct attacks in the territory of Tajikistan, including against U.S. interests and the US Embassy.” The US embassy has previously issued terrorist attack warn- ings for Tajikistan.

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(News report from Issue No. 334, published on June 26 2017)

Kazakhstan strips IS fighters of citizenship

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JUNE 22 2017 (The Bulletin) — Kazakhstan’s upper house of parliament approved a bill that will strip people accused of fighting for the extremist IS group in Syria and Iraq of their citizenship. The Kazakh authorities are increasingly worried about returnees from Syria and Iraq spreading radical ideology and fighting techniques if, and when, they move back to Kazakhstan.

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(News report from Issue No. 334, published on June 26 2017)

Turkmenistan increases security after threat

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JUNE 15 2017 (The Bulletin) — Turkmenistan has boosted its security over the past few days because it has received information that a terrorist attack against it is being planned, the local news service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported. RFE/RL quoted a security official as saying that the information came from four men linked to the radical IS group who were extradited back to Turkmenistan from Turkey.

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(News report from Issue No. 333, published on June 19 2017)

Kazakhstan sets up prison units to tackle extremism

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JUNE 13 2017 (The Bulletin) — Appearing to acknowledge that prisons had become a breeding ground for radical Islam, Kazakh officials said that they were going to set up a unit that would specifically look to counter the radicalisation of inmates. Commentators have previously criticised the Kazakh prison service for the poor conditions of its facilities and the ease that radical Islamic recruiters are able to turn previously moderate Muslims into extremists.

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(News report from Issue No. 333, published on June 19 2017)

25th Georgian dies in Syria fighting for IS

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JUNE 6 2017 (The Bulletin) — Media in Georgia reported that another man from the Pankisi Gorge had died fighting for the extremist IS group in Syria. He was said to be the 25th Georgian national to die fighting for IS. The Pankisi Gorge is a slither of land that borders the Caucasus Mountains. It is predominantly Muslim and was used by Chechen rebel fighters battling Russian troops at the turn of the century as a safe refuge area.

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(News report from Issue No. 332, published on June 12 2017)

Abkhazia says arrests five Tajiks with IS link

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TBILISI, JUNE 9 2017 (The Bulletin) — The authorities in Georgia’s breakaway region of Abkhazia said that they had arrested five Tajik men for having links to the extremist IS group.

Men from Central Asia have come under increased scrutiny for links to the extremist IS group after a series of attacks this year blamed on the rise of extremist recruitment in the region.

In its four line message on the arrests, the Abkhazian authorities did not say where the men were arrested or why they were suspected of having links to IS. “After carrying out the necessary actions, the detainees were handed over to the Russian side to carry out operational-investigative actions,” it said.

What appears unusual in this case is the presence of five Tajiks in Abkhazia, not known for attracting migrant workers from Central Asia.

Russia is one of the few countries to recognise Abkhazia as an independent state.

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(News report from Issue No. 332, published on June 12 2017)