http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-350... Islamic Extremism Spreads in Central Asia
Monday December 15, 2003 7:16 AM
By BURT HERMAN Associated Press Writer
KARA-SUU, Kyrgyzstan (AP) - The illegal flier boldly posted on the concrete telephone pole outside Dilyar Jumabayev's home leaves no doubt about the sentiments of the man who lives inside: "All Muslims of the world unite against the infidels."
Through his black beard, Jumabayev shows an easy smile, but his words are vehement. "Muslims now realize who their enemies are. The United States and Britain want Muslims to fight against each other," he said.
Jumabayev, 32, is a member of the secretive Islamic organization Hizb ut-Tahrir, or Party of Liberation, which is spreading across Central Asia. The growth is believed fueled in part by secular governments' heavy-handed efforts here to crack down on what has become the largest such extremist movement in the region. It has as many as 20,000 members.
Hizb ut-Tahrir is not recognized as a terrorist group by the United States and is so far not connected to any acts of violence. But Kyrgyz security officials warn that it has become a fertile recruiting ground for al-Qaida and its allies, such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, although they often fail to provide hard evidence proving such ties. <snip>
"All the countries of the region are prone to use the 'Islamic threat' as a justification for overgrown security forces, lack of democracy and restrictions on freedom of expression," the group wrote in a June report. "Too often Hizb ut-Tahrir is a useful excuse to avoid challenging the status quo. Too often Western governments, caught up in a global 'war on terror' take such an excuse at face value."<snip>
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And what is in Central Asia
