[Reader-list] US Ambassador Moriarty on "Bangladesh Terrorism"

[Shambhu Rahmat]

...bubble bubble toil and trouble...even a lame duck US presidency
continues to stir up trouble and seek new enemies..hunting wabbits

Below is the key excerpt (aka "the money shot") from new Ambassador
Moriarty's testimony to the Senate. Note the use of checked and
double-checked "facts" based on that most reliable, unbiased and
agenda-free source in subcontinent achaar manufacture-- "Indian press
reports" which are based on that maguffin "Indian Intel" (by the way I
am equally leery of "Bangladesh Intel").

Let the games begin, or rather continue...

JAMES F. MORIARTY/AMBASSADOR-DESIGNATE TO BANGLADESH/SENATE FOREIGN
RELATIONS COMMITTEE
FEBRUARY 6, 2008
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:
It is a great honor to appear before you as President Bush's nominee
to serve as Ambassador to
Bangladesh. I deeply appreciate the trust President Bush and Secretary
Rice have shown in
nominating me and, if confirmed, I will serve to the best of my abilities.
....

Mr. Chairman, I would like to turn now to the U.S. interest in denying
terrorists the use of
Bangladesh's territory. Despite a long and admirable history of
religious tolerance, Bangladesh has
become a target of extremists in recent years. Poverty and political
turmoil have provided some space
for terrorists. Home-grown terrorists called the Jama-atul Mujahideen
Bangladesh (JMB)
simultaneously exploded over 400 small bombs throughout Bangladesh in
August 2005; shortly
thereafter, the JMB embarked on a terror campaign of suicide attacks
against judges, other prominent
figures, and crowded markets. The subsequent execution of six JMB
leaders appears to have left the
terrorist organization on the run.


A number of press reports also indicate, however, that Pakistan-based
militant groups are using
Bangladesh as a staging area and transit point to facilitate attacks
directed at targets in India, and at
least one of these groups, Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LT), has been able to
tap into resources provided by
local militant groups such as Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami, Bangladesh
(HUJI-B) to support their
operations. Indian press reports allege that Bangladeshi HUJI-B
members and individuals affiliated
with the LT are involved in an active terrorist network, operating
from Pakistan and Bangladesh. Press
reports also suggest that this particular network is responsible for a
string of attacks in India, including
the October 2005, May 2007, and August 2007 bombings in Hyderabad and
probably the October
2007 bombing of a shrine in Ajmer, Rajasthan as well.

EMBASSY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
PUBLIC AFFAIRS SECTION
TEL: 880-2-883-7150-4
FAX: 880-2-9881677, 9885688
E-MAIL: DhakaPA at state.gov
WEBSITE: http://dhaka.usembassy.gov

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a confirmation hearing for
Ambassador James
Moriarty, the U.S. Ambassador designate for Bangladesh, Wednesday,
February 6, 2008. His
testimony is attached. A full transcript will be available shortly.