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Two separate attacks near courthouses in Bangladesh on Nov. 29 killed at least 13 people and wounded approximately 40 others. These latest attacks appear to be part of a campaign waged against the country's judiciary and government by militant Islamists intent on replacing Bangladesh's secular government with rule they deem as based on Islamic law. In addition, there are indications that suicide bombers carried out these most recent attacks, which could mean the Islamists are escalating their campaign. These militants have demonstrated an ability to strike in multiple locations at will, and their attack cycle is fairly short, which indicates that more attacks are likely in the near future.
Although no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, Bangladeshi authorities suspect Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen (JuM), a banned jihadist group intent on replacing secular rule in Bangladesh with an Islamic state via an armed insurrection; JuM has threatened repeatedly to attack judges, the law minister and court buildings if Shariah is not instituted. JuM claimed responsibility for a Nov. 14 attack that killed two Bangladeshi judges in the coastal town of Jhalakathi, 155 miles south of Dhaka. That attack was part of the group's ongoing campaign, which also included an Aug. 17 attack in which more than 400 small bombs exploded in a span of about half an hour across Bangladesh. Though the bombs were crude and ineffective, the explosions killed two and injured more than 140.
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