The Tragedy of Bangladesh
By Anwar A. Khan
Bangladesh, once a beacon of hope and resilience, now stands cloaked beneath the suffocating veil of tyranny. It is a deflowered land, ravaged by both foreign and domestic hands, its spirit stifled by forces too insidious to name. A twisted narrative, crafted by the puppet regime of Yunus and Waker, has stolen the very soul of this proud nation and dragged it toward an abyss. Installed on August 8, 2024, by invisible forces—the CIA, ISI, and treacherous local collaborators—this government represents a profound betrayal of the ideals that gave birth to Bangladesh in 1971. Yet, though defiled, this country still pulses with the indomitable spirit of resistance—a spirit that shall not fade easily.
The shadows of global geopolitics loom long and dark, their reach insidious. In this murk, the United States, cloaked in the garb of democracy, parades the crown of hypocrisy. Its interventions, draped in the false promise of freedom, have often sown only death, destruction, and instability. The CIA, ever the instrument of American imperialism, has once again extended its hand to the heart of Bangladesh, leading it down a path of betrayal that desecrates the hard-won ideals of independence—ideals fought for in the blood of patriots in 1971.
On August 5, 2024, the darkness descended. A coup, engineered by the foreign hands of the CIA and ISI, aided by treacherous local forces, stripped Bangladesh of its will and autonomy. The nation that once rose from the sacrifice of its people now groans beneath the yoke of foreign puppeteers. This was no ordinary coup—it was an elaborate conspiracy designed to dismantle a government that had once served the hopes and aspirations of the people, led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Under her leadership, Bangladesh had flourished—its economy soared, its people thrived, and the nation’s hope for a prosperous future had seemed within reach. But all of this was shattered by the insidious machinations of foreign powers and their local allies, who saw fit to rob the nation of its future.
Bangladesh’s victory in 1971 was not merely the triumph of arms; it was the victory of the human spirit—a triumph forged at an unimaginable cost, with the blood of martyrs staining the soil. Yet today, that soil bears the stain of foreign betrayal. The same forces that fought against our independence now return—not as conquerors, but as manipulative puppet-masters, undermining the democracy we fought so fiercely to build.
The overthrow of Sheikh Hasina was no accident. It was the culmination of years of subterfuge, an intricate conspiracy to erode the foundations of Bangladesh’s democracy. The so-called anti-quota movement, paraded as a student protest, was little more than a smokescreen, a pawn in a much larger game. Behind the innocent faces of manipulated students lay a dark, calculating conspiracy designed to create chaos, destabilize the government, and replace it with a regime more pliable to foreign interests and extremist ideologies.
At the center of this plot stood Professor Dr. Mohammad Yunus, a man whose ties to the West—particularly the United States—are as deep as they are troubling. Yunus, once hailed as a visionary under cloak-and-dagger, now stands as the face of this illegitimate government—a government that was not borne of the people’s will but of the dirty hands of foreign powers and their local collaborators. This was no peaceful transition of power; it was a violent coup—an operation executed with military precision by the CIA-ISI and their brutal local allies.
The violence that followed was catastrophic. Thousands of innocent lives were lost, with 98% of the bloodshed perpetrated by extremist factions such as Jamaat-e-Islami, the very forces that sided with the Pakistani military during the genocide of 1971. These collaborators of tyranny have been emboldened once more, their murderous ideology flourishing under the regime of Yunus and his cronies. The streets of Dhaka ran red with blood as these forces, driven by their vicious ideology, sought to manipulate public sympathy and overthrow a government that had only ever sought to serve its people.
The land that was born from the sacrifice of its people, a sanctuary of coexistence and peace, is now desecrated by the very forces that once sought to crush its soul in 1971. Jamaat-e-Islami, with its blood-soaked history, once again thrives, its modern-day offshoots—Hizbut Tahrir, Ansarullah Bangla Team, and others—spreading their poison under the protection of the puppet regime. These forces of extremism, nurtured by foreign intervention, now hold the fate of Bangladesh in their iron grip.
For over seven months, since the unlawful overthrow of Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh has been trapped in an unrelenting storm of violence, murders, rapes, and lawlessness. Yunus, the puppet leader, has surrounded himself with a cabal of criminals and extremists—horrific street gangs, corrupt mullahs, and a military establishment more concerned with its own survival than the welfare of the nation. Under his rule, Bangladesh has descended into anarchy. The once-proud institutions—its judiciary, police, armed forces—have been compromised, stripped of their dignity, and reduced to tools of oppression.
Once a symbol of progress, a land of promise, Bangladesh now lies in ruins. Under Sheikh Hasina, the country had been transformed by monumental development projects, raising it to a level where it rivaled the nations of the West. Now, its factories lie silent, its workers abandoned, its streets plagued by violence and mob rule. The cost of living has skyrocketed, and the common people find themselves teetering on the edge of despair. Women, the backbone of the workforce, now find their lives reduced to a daily struggle for survival.
Since the fall of Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh has been held captive by a regime that cares little for its people. A regime that seeks only to entrench its own power, while persecuting Sheikh Hasina, her party, and her allies at any cost. While the nation burns, its people suffer, and the puppet master Yunus remains indifferent, smiling in the face of disaster. His detachment from the suffering of the people is a testament to his true nature—a man more concerned with his own interests than the welfare of the nation he was meant to serve.
The military, too, bears responsibility for the bloodshed. Those who stood idly by, or aided and abetted the coup, have allowed the perpetrators of this genocide to walk free. The promise of justice, invoked by international bodies, remains hollow. The United Nations, under Volker Türk’s leadership, has failed to act. Its promises of justice are empty words. Meanwhile, the Western media, so quick to condemn the actions of other nations, has turned a blind eye to the atrocities committed in Bangladesh since August 5, 2024. Their silence, their complicity, only deepens the sense of betrayal.
Even now, as the broken land of Bangladesh groans under the weight of oppression, there are those who seek to shield Yunus and his collaborators from justice. UN Secretary-General António Guterres, at the behest of Yunus, has visited Bangladesh, showering praise upon a government that has led the nation to ruin. His visit—a travesty—exposes the depths to which international diplomacy has sunk.
Vigilante justice never heals the wounds of crime, nor does the wrath of mob violence ever mend the fabric of society. The tragic wave of rapes, amidst political turmoil, is fueled by the glaring absence of accountability—by the impotence of those meant to safeguard justice. Only a steadfast judiciary, untainted and fiercely backed by resolute law enforcement, can curb the tide of anarchy. Yet, the current interim leader remains powerless, for he is both the architect and enabler of this relentless cycle of violence.
Yet, despite all this, the spirit of Bangladesh—the spirit of those who fought and died for freedom in 1971—remains unbroken. The people will not stand idly by while their nation is sold to foreign powers and extremist ideologies. The fight for justice is far from over. The day will come when those responsible for this betrayal will face justice. The light of truth, though dimmed, will shine again. The people will rise, as they have before, and reclaim their land.
Bangladesh will not be a pawn in the hands of foreign powers and their ruthless collaborators. It will rise again—stronger, more united, and more determined than ever. The struggle for a free and democratic Bangladesh endures. And one day, the forces of tyranny shall be vanquished. The end is not far.
The author is a 1971 freedom fighter and political analyst, remains committed to writing about international affairs and the political landscape of Bangladesh from Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Views are personal and IAR neither endorses nor is responsible for them
