Sen. Cruz Issues Statement on Terror Attack in Bangladesh

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today issued the following statement in the wake of the latest radical Islamic terrorist attack in Bangladesh:

“This weekend as Americans celebrate the birth of our nation and our freedoms, the horrific events yesterday are a sobering reminder of the radical Islamic terrorists who seek to destroy us,” Sen. Cruz said. “Twenty more innocent civilians are dead in the most recent attack by radical Islamic terrorism – this time the target was an upscale neighborhood in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Terrorists throwing grenades and shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ attacked a popular restaurant frequented by diplomats and students, reportedly slitting the throats of some of their victims and singling out those who could not recite verses from the Koran.

“Over the past few years, the authorities in Bangladesh have insisted that terrorist incidents in their country were somehow isolated from the global scourge of radical Islamic terrorism, the product of homegrown militants responding to domestic grievances. This attack, however, appears designed by ISIS to prove otherwise, and that the Islamic State is functioning not only in Syria and Iraq but also in Bangladesh, just as it is in Turkey, France, Belgium and the United States. 

“This isn’t just a wake-up call anymore – it is a screaming siren of an alarm that demands our urgent attention. Just as the Bangladesh attack was a demonstration of the Islamic States’ determination to take their war on civilization to another Muslim-majority nation, the recent attacks in the United States from San Bernardino to Orlando demonstrate the United States is, likewise, not immune. We are fortunate to have friends and allies in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia who see this enemy for what it is, and we should do everything we can to partner with them not to struggle against generic ‘violent extremism’ but to actually take the fight to the radical Islamic terrorists.”

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