Radical Islamism – A threat to Bosniak Identity and Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina (en translation)

Abstract: The war in Bosnia and Herzegovina that broke out in the eve of post-Cold War era has brought to the international agenda the issue of Bosniak identity, rights and future political and state representation. The security of Bosniak identity, built up on religious and cultural aspects, was confronted in military terms with nationalistic ethnic approach of Serbs and Croats. The aim of this paper is to analyze the roots, history and evolution of Bosniak identity as challenged by radical Islamic ideology that emerged with the conflict. The role of radical Islamism in shaping the security of post-conflict Bosnia will also be described. Foreign assistance or help from various Muslim states, non-governmental organizations as well as from radical Islamic militant groups put the question of the Bosniak islamization and radicalization into discourse. The security and structure of the Bosnia and Herzegovina was also challenged by radical Islamic ideologies and their militant representations. After the September 11th the Islamic terrorism was a target of international war and that has changed Bosnia and Herzegovina in a great manner.