Concerned about its citizens traveling illegally to Syria to support Da’ish, Uzbekistan has begun an anti-terror campaign to stem the flow.
In late March 2015, before the Nowruz holiday, the Uzbek Ministry of Internal Affairs conducted an anti-terror operation called Anti-terror Cleansing.
Abdulaziz Mansur, deputy chairman of the Muslim Board of Uzbekistan, has also urged Uzbeks to write books and articles exposing Da’ish as murderers and criminals to undermine the terrorist group’s appeal to the young.
By early 2015, there was increasing evidence that Da’ish may be reaching into Afghanistan and threatening neighboring Central Asian countries. Afghan officials reported that hundreds of foreign fighters had entered the country under the black flag of Da’ish, and several Taliban leaders have declared allegiance to the terrorists.
Uzbekistan’s homegrown extremist group, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), may also have established an affiliation with Da’ish. Uzbekistan’s National Security Service (NSS) believes that the IMU has provided fighters for the Syrian war.
Alisher Khamadov of the NSS sees an increased threat from the IMU, especially from fighters returning from the Middle East. Khamadov told Russian news agency RIA Novosti in February 2015 that captured IMU members had revealed a plan for a series of terrorist attacks in Uzbekistan. Afghan security officials have also reported increased IMU presence in northern Afghanistan, near the borders with Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
Sources: RIA Novosti, Regnum.ru, The Long War Journal, BBC News