SOCHI (Sputnik) — Joldubayeva said the situation in Kyrgyzstan pointed to a growing threat of radicalization and a spread of extremist activity in the society.
"Increased armed group density and frequent militant clashes with Tajik and Turkmen border guards shows a real danger of terrorists breaking through from Afghanistan into Central Asia with the aim of causing further instability in the region," Joldubaeva said at the 7th conference of the International Association of Prosecutors (IAP) of Central and Eastern European and Central Asian countries in Sochi.
The prosecutor general noted the danger posed by radicals returning to their countries of origin after taking part in training and combat in the ongoing Syrian, Iraqi and the Afghan-Pakistani conflicts. Extremists reentering their home countries may spread violent ideologies throughout the region, Joldubayeva warned.
Illegal recruitment and trafficking activities funnel radicalized social groups into terror organizations, and are a threat to national security, she said.
Central Asia has seen a rise in violent religious extremist groups since the demise of the Soviet Union. Tajikistan's 1992-1997 civil war was fought between government forces and a range of Islamist organizations supported by the Islamic State of Afghanistan.
Kyrgyzstan's security sources are keeping track of almost 2,000 extremists in the country, and most are affiliated with the international Hizb ut-Tahrir organization.
