Washington: A former White House official said the United States is seriously concerned about growing radicalism in Bangladesh. He also said former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had controlled extremism well in the country. Lisa Curtis, former deputy assistant to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and senior director of the National Security Council for South and Central Asia from 2017 to 2021, said.
‘Islamic extremist released from prison’
“Bangladesh is at a critical moment,” Curtis said on Thursday. Efforts to oust Sheikh Hasina from power and reform the political system are promising. There is hope that the democratic process will become stronger. But there are also many concerns. Some Islamist extremists have been released from prison. Hindus, Christians and other minorities have also been attacked. We have seen the history of terrorism in Bangladesh. In 2016, Holi (Artisan) bakery was attacked. This was a very serious incident. There were some Islamic State terrorists in Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina did a good job in controlling the extremism problem in Bangladesh.
“Bangladesh is going through a very delicate phase”
Curtis said there were concerns that extremists would return to politics, which would be bad for Bangladesh. He said, “This is not good for the entire region, the United States or anyone.” Bangladesh is going through a very critical period. So while it may not be Trump’s top priority, I think his team, his national security team is going to have to pay attention to what’s going on there. Curtis also said the new government should work with India because India is also worried about Bangladesh’s future. He said that as a neighboring country, India has been the most affected. (language)
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