In comparison to the indiscriminate violence perpetrated by Islamic terrorists, the Naxal menace (also infamous as Left-wing Extremist or Maoist) has been plaguing India for quite some time as one of the biggest internal security challenges. The most affected Chattisgarh state witnessed one of the worst-ever massacres on 17 July when armed Naxalites attacked the Errabore Relief Camp in the Dantewada district, killing some 30 unarmed civilians and injuring scores. The attackers have abducted more than 45 people in that fateful night.
On 11 July, India’s commercial hub, Mumbai (in Maharastra) and Jammu & Kashmir State witnessed a series of bomb and Grenade attacks perpetrated by suspected Islamic terrorists.
Despite incessant combing operations against Maoists in the jungles of both affected and targeted districts since the 24 March Ramgiri Udayagiri Jail attacks, the Maoist mobilisations continue unabated in Orissa. Undoubtedly, the operations had least impact on the Maoist movements in the Northern Orissa districts adjacent to the borders of neighbouring Jharkhand. They continue to camp freely in the inter-district borders and visit the villages at night to collect water and rations and organise village meetings. Even armed Maoists roam the village streets in groups of three to five.
The forests of India are now under a novel threat posed by extremist outfits. Starting from the Hizbul Mujahideen to Naxals (the Left-wing extremists), all find the forest their safest hideouts to continue their anti-social and anti-national activities, including planning and deployment. According to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF), half a million crimes are reported from India's forest areas every year, and about 30% of it is related to militancy in these areas.
After months of investigations, authorities in Bangladesh slapped a 40-year jail sentence to three militants of the outlawed Islamic outfit Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) blamed for a series of bombings in the country in 2005. Two convicts— Mohammad Awal and Ataur Sunny— have confessed their involvement in the 17 August countrywide bombings that killed three people and left over 150 injured. They also confessed that two British nationals financed the August serial bombings.