The birth of Bangladesh was written in the blood, courage, and moral resolve of unarmed people standing against tyranny. But from the very beginning, certain forces refused to accept this sovereign emergence. Chief among them was Jamaat-e-Islami—a party that actively colluded with the Pakistani military during the 1971 Liberation War, committing atrocities against the very people it now seeks to politically manipulate once again.
Fifty years on, Jamaat hasn’t abandoned its goals—it has merely adapted. Today, in collusion with China and under the shadow of Nobel laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus, Jamaat is laying the groundwork for a new geopolitical nightmare: the creation of a so-called “independent Arakan Muslim state” carved out of the southeastern region of Bangladesh. This is not just a domestic threat; it’s a regional powder keg, and China may be sleepwalking straight into the blast zone.
A Legacy of Betrayal and a Reinvented Strategy
Jamaat has never recognized Bangladesh’s sovereignty. From orchestrating war crimes to attempting a theocratic grip on power, the group has repeatedly proven itself an enemy of democratic values and national unity. Though banned and marginalized for years, Jamaat has resurfaced with more sophisticated tactics—using international lobbying, covert funding networks, and clandestine armed cells to push forward its vision of a religiously governed state.
At the heart of this renewed conspiracy is Dr. Yunus. Internationally lauded for his humanitarian image, Yunus has been deeply embedded in efforts to engineer a political shift in Bangladesh. Initially seeking an alliance between BNP and a so-called “third force” inclusive of Jamaat, Yunus changed course when BNP resisted the idea. He then pivoted—aligning directly with Jamaat to become an architect of a regional geopolitical plan that threatens to dismantle the integrity of the Bangladeshi state.
The China Factor: Misguided Partnership or Calculated Gamble?
China, aggressively expanding its strategic footprint across South and Southeast Asia, views the Myanmar corridor—and especially the Rakhine region—as vital for its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Through this route runs the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC), China’s sole alternative to secure access to the Indian Ocean. In pursuit of stability in this area, Beijing appears to have entertained the idea of a “Muslim Arakan state” as a buffer zone—promised to them by Jamaat and Yunus as a pro-China entity that could help curtail U.S. and Indian influence.
What China fails to grasp, however, is the true nature of the beast it’s embracing.
Jamaat’s real aim isn’t stability—it’s jihad. The plan is clear: first establish a pseudo-state with Chinese backing, then flood it with radical Islamist factions. Groups like Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO), Lashkar-e-Taiba, and even offshoots of ISIS are already active in the Rakhine-Cox’s Bazar belt. A new “Arakan state” would become a jihadi haven—another Afghanistan, but on China’s doorstep.
Far from ensuring influence, China would be empowering actors who see Beijing’s atheistic, authoritarian state as an ideological enemy. The weapons China arms today may be turned on them tomorrow.
Yunus’s Triple Agenda
Yunus’s agenda is multifaceted. First, to use Jamaat as a vehicle for political takeover in Bangladesh, making himself a behind-the-scenes ruler. Second, to damage Bangladesh’s international image using Jamaat’s Islamist network, thus softening the ground for regime change. Third, to draw China into supporting a religiously fractured region under the guise of geopolitical advantage—creating division and destabilization that would open space for a new regional order controlled by transnational Islamist forces.
The Broader Conspiracy: A Regional Firestorm in the Making
This is no isolated plot. Jamaat’s agenda enjoys silent backing from Pakistan’s ISI, several Western NGOs, and factions within the Chinese foreign policy establishment. Their common goal: to create an unstable Bangladesh where democracy is dismantled, extremism flourishes, and a new axis of radical influence takes root.
The results would be catastrophic:
• Armed insurgency in southeastern Bangladesh, including Chattogram and the Hill Tracts.
• Collapse of investor confidence and national stability.
• Breakdown in Bangladesh-China ties, and increased military friction with India.
• The entire South Asian region pushed to the brink of an undeclared war.
China’s Looming Backlash
By aligning with Jamaat, China is walking into a diplomatic ambush. Not only does this threaten its strategic interests, but it undermines its international image. Already under fire for human rights abuses in Xinjiang, China’s support—explicit or tacit—of a jihadist microstate will lead to intensified sanctions, diplomatic isolation, and economic retaliation from the West, India, and beyond.
Worse still, the spillover will not remain external. Once entrenched in Arakan, the radical forces will penetrate China’s own borders—into Yunnan, Tibet, and Xinjiang. The Uyghur cause, currently suppressed, could find new alliances and support. Jamaat’s ultimate loyalty is not to China, but to a global Islamic caliphate—utterly incompatible with Chinese nationalism or socialism.
A Fork in the Road
China now stands at a crossroads. It can either recognize the dangerous deception being peddled by Jamaat and Yunus and disengage, or continue blindly toward a geopolitical disaster from which it may never recover. The people of Bangladesh have rejected fundamentalism since 1971 and will fight again to preserve their sovereignty.
If China truly seeks peace, prosperity, and partnership in South Asia, it must distance itself from groups that promote terrorism, sectarianism, and division. The only path to safeguarding its interests—whether economic or political—is through a stable, united Bangladesh and a cooperative regional order.
The choice is clear. Betray Bangladesh now, and China may soon find itself staring down the barrel of the very forces it thought it could control.
