UN warns Al Qaida seeking to establish terrorist cells in Bangladesh
Dhaka, Aug 14 (IANS) The United Nations Security Council has warned that Al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) is attempting to use Bangladesh as a base to establish terrorist cells.
The finding appears in the 38th report of the UN Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team. The report was submitted to the Security Council committee dealing with Islamic State, Al-Qaida and associated groups.
The report said that the November 2025 Red Fort attack in Delhi was linked to AQIS, while highlighting concerns over the group’s efforts to use Bangladesh as a base for building terrorist networks, Bangladeshi media reported.
Against this backdrop, the team warned that terrorist threats “intensified” in South Asia.
After the democratically elected Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was forced into exile by an uprising in which Islamist elements played a leading role, fears have mounted over terrorist groups finding a fertile ground there.
AQIS was founded in 2014 by Al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri.
“AQIS continued to evolve from a fragmented group into a regional terrorist entity,” the report said. It added that the organisation had established logistics and financial networks and was working through “decentralised small, scattered cells instead of large units”.
The UN assessment placed the development within a broader deterioration of the security environment in South Asia. It said the global terrorist threat remained broadly unchanged but had intensified in the Sahel and South Asia.
“The threat level remained broadly unchanged. However, it intensified in the Sahel and South Asia. Al-Qaida senior leadership remained marginalized. Its capability and intent to conduct external operations remained unclear,” said the report in its summary.
The report said regional tensions remained high as cross-border attacks between Pakistan and Afghanistan continued. It accused the Taliban authorities of continuing their support for Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, which had escalated attacks against Pakistan and provoked military exchanges.
The Taliban continued to deny harbouring terrorist groups, it said. Member states were concerned that the conflict could create opportunities for extremist organisations and generate further security challenges across the region.
According to the report, the ability of several terrorist groups to operate in Afghanistan remained an enduring threat to neighbouring countries and Central Asia. It said the Taliban had been unable to suppress the terrorist problem despite operations against Islamic State-Khorasan and attempts to contain other groups.
The report said AQIS also formed the backbone of Ittihad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan, which was reportedly responsible for several attacks. AQIS leaders were believed to remain in Kabul and had reportedly been issued Afghan identity documents, suggesting close cooperation between the Taliban and the organisation.
–IANS
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