John Kerry arrives in Bangladesh for talks on security

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Bangladesh on Monday (August 29) to discuss security cooperation after a series of killings by Islamist militants, as well as economic development and human rights.

Kerry will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, opposition and civic leaders during the one-day visit, his first to Bangladesh as secretary of state.

While security cooperation between the United States and Bangladesh is not new, the Bangladeshi government has insisted the latest attacks, including the recent killings at a cafe that targeted non-Muslims and foreigners, are the work of homegrown groups.

Washington believes the killings carry the hallmarks of Islamic State and al Qaeda, and worries that such attacks could drive away investment in a country fighting widespread poverty.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for the July 1 attack on a cafe in the capital, Dhaka, in which 22 people were killed, mostly non-Muslims and foreigners, including one American. It was the worst militant attack in the country’s history.

Bangladesh police believe that Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, which has pledged allegiance to Islamic State, was involved in organising that attack.

On Saturday, security forces killed three Islamist militants, including a Bangladeshi-born Canadian citizen called Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury who was accused of masterminding the assault on the cafe.

Michael Kugelman of The Wilson Center, a Washington-based think tank, said the U.S. administration has not paid enough attention to the growing terror threats in Bangladesh, which is now impacting Americans.