A new documentary by RFE/RL provides an opportunity to reflect on the complexities of the recruitment of Central Asians to violent extremism and the limitations of research and policy-making on the topic On Monday 6 November, I had the privilege of attending the UK premiere at Chatham House of the new RFE/RL documentary Not In […]
Saipira Furstenberg and John Heathershaw offer reflections on their visit to the OSCE (HDIM) meeting in Warsaw, 2018. On September 10, we visited Europe’s annual largest human rights and democracy conference, the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting (HDIM) in Warsaw. HDIM is a two-week session, bringing together 57 OSCE participating states, and nongovernmental representatives, international […]
The Halloween terrorist attack in New York by Sayfullo Saipov has ignited a debate in social media between scholars of Central Asia on why there are an apparently increasing number of such attacks by Uzbeks. The New York atrocity follows similar events in Istanbul, St Petersburg and Stockholm. Four very prominent attacks within ten months give an impression and suggests a […]
In early September, six million mobile phone users in Tajikistan received text messages telling them to “respect traditional clothes” and “make it a tradition to wear traditional clothes.” The messages, sent at the behest of the State Committee on Women’s and Family Affairs, are the latest stage in a government campaign to suppress Islamic clothing in the […]
Edil Baisalov, Kyrgyz Political Activist A Conversation about Islamic Radicalization in Central Asia 2.00-3.00pm, Wednesday 1 February Amory 142, University of Exeter Edil Baisalov is one of the most well-known political figures in Kyrgyzstan having been a prominent civil society activist and subsequently served in senior positions inside government. In 1999, he founded the Coalition […]
An Open Letter Concerning the International Crisis Group’s Reporting of Islamic Radicalization in Central Asia On October 3, 2016, the International Crisis Group (ICG), an influential independent research organization, released another report on Islamic radicalization in Central Asia. The report—Kyrgyzstan: State Fragility and Radicalisation—follows previous publications on Tajikistan (2016, 2011, 2009) and Kyrgyzstan (2015, 2009) […]
What little we know suggests that the non-religious reasons Central Asians join ISIS are more important than the religious factors often cited by analysts. Cover Photo: Former Tajik OMON commander, Gulmurod Halimov Credit: YouTube For almost a year, the foremost question in the minds of security analysts of Central Asia has been why some […]
What does the loss of political status for the IRPT mean for Tajikistan? And why do Western governments apparently no longer speak in its favour behind closed doors? By John Heathershaw Photo credit (frontpage): David Trilling /Eurasianet.org On 8 July, 2015, the state news agency of the Republic of Tajikistan, Khovar, announced the loss of […]
The spectacular defection of Tajikistan’s paramilitary commander Gulmurod Halimov to the Islamic State has caused an unprecedented flurry of English language press coverage of Tajikistan. Articles and op-eds on the situation have been published by the New York Times, Vice News, CNN and Washington Post amongst others. Long-standing predictor of the Central Asian fall, Ahmed […]
Cover photo: Still from ISIS video with Gulmurod Halimov Credit: YouTube What does the Gulmurod Halimov defection tell us about the threat of ISIS and Tajikistan’s security? By John Heathershaw The defection of Gulmurod Halimov from his position at the head of Tajikistan’s Ministry of Interior’s special forces (OMON) to the Islamic State in […]
Cover Photo: Tajik fighter Olim Yusuf Credit: YouTube The International Crisis Group’s (ICG) latest report on the radicalization of Muslims in Central Asia, Syria Calling: Radicalization in Central Asia (20 Jan 2015), focuses specifically on the recruitment of Central Asians to Islamic State (IS) and the consequences of this phenomenon for the region’s security. This […]
Cover Photo: Abu Muhammed Tojiki Credit: Odnoklassniki In December 2014, thirteen videos of Tajik jihadists fighting with the Islamic State in Iraq appeared on the Russian social networking site Odnoklassniki (Classmates). These are the first videos made by Tajiks in Iraq to be published online. At least eight different Tajik fighters appear in the […]