DHAKA: Leading clerics at mosques across Bangladesh backed Saturday a government crackdown on suspected Muslim hardliners, saying those engaging in terrorist acts in the name of religion should be punished. "Islam does not support any act of terrorism. Those who are engaged in terrorism using Islam's name are nothing but terrorists. They should be punished for their crimes," a statement by the country's 101 head clerics, or imam, said Saturday. The statement followed the recent arrests of suspected Islamic hardliners throughout the Muslim-majority country.
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On Wednesday, the government banned two hardline groups, the Jamaatul Mujaheedin and Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh, and arrested more than 100 including alleged Jamaatul Mujaheedin leader Asadullah Ghalib.
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| In the statement, the imams expressed their concerns at the recent spate of killings and bomb attacks across the country and said, "No group has the right to take law into its own hands". |
The crackdown came as the country's donors met in Washington to express concern at "deteriorating governance situation, political violence and climate of impunity" in Bangladesh. The government alleged that the two groups were involved in a wave of bombings of non-governmental groups, holy shrines and other targets. In the statement, the imams expressed their concerns at the recent spate of killings and bomb attacks across the country and said, "No group has the right to take law into its own hands".
| That's why you have a government. Stable countries don't have bands of fascisti running around bumping people off or bullying them. |
"The imams who know anything about Islamic Shariah (law) do not support terrorist acts. We detest all criminal activities and urge the government to take legal action against those involved in these crimes," it said. |