Extremism expanding.

Dhaka -- As the Abdul Rahman crisis in Afghanistan has held the world's attention, another has emerged. Islamic extremism is "exploding" in the south Asian country of Bangladesh, where militants are turning to suicide bombings to bring down that country's secular democracy and impose Islamic Sharia law. On August 17, 2005, 500 bombs were simultaneously set off in hundreds of towns and cities across the nation. Hundreds of extremists were subsequently arrested. There then followed a campaign of bomb attacks--including, for the first time, suicide attacks--against courts and judges in the fall. Jamiat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh has emerged as one of the most feared militant groups.

One lawyer observed ominously that "Bangladesh could become worse than Iraq or Afghanistan." The U.S. Peace Corps pulled its volunteers out of the country in March, citing the threat of terrorism from extremist elements. Despite these events, the Bangladeshi government, conscious of protecting its international image, continues to deny there is a threat, claiming that radicals are simply a few "miscreants" with minimal support (Globe and Mail, March 27, 29, 2006).