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India: "The Resurgence of Ethno-Islamist Terrorism"

By Animesh Roul

I just wrote an article for the Jamestown Foundation’s Terrorism Monitor (Vol.6(22), Nov. 25, 2008) on the recent serial blasts in Assam (India) and the rise of Ethno-Islamist Terrorism in the region.

Here is an excerpt:

India's Troubled Northeast Region: The Resurgence of Ethno-Islamist Terrorism


The security situation in India's troubled northeast region plumbed new depths in October when two major terror incidents struck Manipur and Assam states. On October 21, nearly 17 people were killed in Imphal and over 30 injured in a powerful bomb blast triggered by suspected militants of the People's Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK). The militants were believed to be targeting government security forces (The Sangai Express, October 22). A week later, on October 30, neighboring Assam witnessed serial explosions that killed nearly 84 people and left scores of wounded (Assam Tribune, November 3). Suspicion in these attacks focused on the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and the Bangladesh based Harkat ul-Jihad Islami (HuJI) combine. The attacks consisted of ten low and high intensity bomb blasts within a span of 20 minutes in the cities of Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon, Barapeta and Guwahati. The Assam blasts occurred as recent terror attacks have targeted other parts of India, including Jaipur, Delhi, Ahmadabad and Bangalore (see Terrorism Focus, August 5).

The aim of the perpetrators was a high fatality rate and widespread chaos, as the blasts were aimed at crowded places crammed with office workers and shoppers. Forensic investigations revealed that the bombs used a cocktail of RDX (hexogen), ammonium nitrate, plastic explosives and TNT with high-tech timer devices (Economic Times [India], November 7). For the first time in India, cars laden with explosives were used in the blasts in Guwahati, whereas motorbikes and cycles were used in previous blasts. The trend of using a deadly mixture of explosives, which is a hallmark of Islamist groups like HuJI, is new to the region. HuJI or other Islamist terrorists active in the region (e.g. the Lashkar-e-Toiba or the newly emerged Indian Mujahideen) have been accused of orchestrating a number of such terror strikes in major cities across India in the past. For the first time, however, traces of jihadi footprints are emerging in northeast India.

You may also access the full publicationhere.


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