Words and violence: militant Islamist attacks on bloggers in Bangladesh and the UK

Bhatt, Chetan ORCID: 0000-0002-4025-4203 (2020) Words and violence: militant Islamist attacks on bloggers in Bangladesh and the UK. Ethnic and Racial Studies. 0 - 0. ISSN 0141-9870

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Abstract

From 2013, groups associated with Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent systematically targeted secular bloggers and writers in Bangladesh and its international diaspora for brutal killings and relentless harassment. At least twelve writers were killed after 2013. This article explores the historical context of the violence, including in the UK, a site of enduring conflicts between secular and political Islamist Bangladeshis. The context includes memories of the 1971 Bangladeshi genocide and the charged political environment after 2009 arising from the International Crimes Tribunal (Bangladesh) that had sought to bring perpetrators of the genocide to trial. The rise of political blogging in the Bangladeshi diaspora and the impact of the killings is explored. A range of conceptual issues are discussed, including the power of social media in the killings and the mobilization of political fear. The article is based on depth interviews with Bangladeshi bloggers and activists living under threat.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rers20/current
Additional Information:	© 2020 Informa UK Limited
Divisions:	Sociology
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HT Communities. Classes. Races H Social Sciences > HV Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Criminology T Technology
Date Deposited:	16 Nov 2020 11:51
Last Modified:	17 Apr 2024 03:06
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/107447

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