In view of the current situation, the United Kingdom recently adjusted its travel warning toward Bangladesh in relation to terrorist threats and the instability of the Bangladeshi political climate. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) updated the “safety and security” part of its guidance on Tuesday evening, stressing risk awareness.
In its advisory, it says, “There is a significant possibility of terrorists targeting Bangladesh for a terror attack.” This underlines that risks of attacks can be in such territories that attract foreigners; oases that are religious areas, political meetings, and any open space. The FCDO also states that some extremists have attacked those whom they deemed are of oppositive opinion or are living in repentance to the extremist groups’ perception of the Islamic faith.
In addition, the advisory warned regarding the threats to the minority religious groups and described some previous attacks on police and security forces in the form of IED blasts in some of the cities. As for crime, it says that the Bangladeshi authorities are actively pursuing attempts to carry out terrorist attacks, and, therefore, travellers may encounter increased security measures, or their movement may be limited at short notice.
The advisory in the “political situation” sub-section says that Bangladesh continues to be politically unstable. Most of the protests and political events turn into riots and confrontations with authorities. The FCDO notes that during protests and strikes – known locally as hartals – fires, destruction of property, as well as violence and deaths may occur. Such unrest is also likely to see an attack on public transport and other private property.
The UK government still advises against ‘all but essential travel to Bangladesh and advised holidaymakers to avoid rallies and demonstrations and to monitor developments on the ground. The new travel warning is intended to protect the British people from threats to security and the political climate in the region.
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