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A Hotbed for Terrorism: Zooming in on Uzbekistan

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Islamic terrorist Sayfullo Saipov used a simple rental flatbed truck as a weapon of mass destruction Tuesday to murder and maim innocent people in New York City.  

According to law enforcement authorities, Saipov planned the attack for weeks. He had rented the vehicle from a Home Depot store only an hour before he used it to murder eight people.

The 29-year-old Saipov came to the United States on a visa diversity program and is originally from Uzbekistan.

Uzbeks have been involved in a number of terrorist attacks in recent years, mostly in Russia and Europe.  

CBN News' Senior International Correspondents Gary Land and George Thomas sat down to discuss the significance of Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries involved in the war on terror.

Uzbekistan is a hotbed for terrorism. It was a satellite state of the Soviet Union and the predominately Muslim country has been led by strict dictators.

A close partner with the U.S. in the war on terror, the central Asian country has clamped down on the Wahhabi extremist doctrine preached in mosques.

"Should Uzbekistan be on the president's travel ban list?" Lane asked.

"You have to have a visa if you come to the United States. It's the nature of our society. We are an open society. And unfortunately, since 9/11, many of these folks who want to do us harm have found a way to take advantage of the openness we have," Thomas answered.

"Think about it. We've seen these suicide bombers using trucks in their attacks in Europe... knife attacks in Jerusalem. I think you are going to see more and more of this. As the security conditions in our country have tightened, folks are trying to see what other areas of our nation are vulnerable. The reality is we have so many gaping holes because of the nature of the freeness and openness of our society," Thomas continued.

"In Uzbekistan, you have a country where the authority has really clamped down. So many Uzbek Muslims feel restricted and so they cannot embrace these Wahhabi radical viewpoints, so they leave the country. They go to Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, India, and they've also gone to the battlefields of Syria and Iraq. You have many from those central Asian countries who have joined Al-Qaeda, ISIS, and other terror groups to fight the infidels from the world," Thomas explained.

According to media reports, Saipov became radicalized through social media after he moved to the U.S. because he had a newfound religious freedom.

Thomas says American Muslims need to take matters into their own hands. If they know someone who has extremist views, they should contact the authorities.

"The moment you see these extremist views, call them out. Share this with your local imam," he said.

Thomas also believes the U.S. needs stricter immigration laws.

"It is a privilege to come to the United States. You must have the ability to try to decipher people's intentions. Are you coming here on a tourist visa? Are you coming here on business? At the same time, we need to have a system to vet these folks in a way we haven't in the past,"  Thomas said.

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