The day before the tragic crash of a Bangladesh Air Force jet into the Milestone School, a cryptic warning was posted from a Facebook page allegedly run by the hacker group Anonymous. The crash resulted in a devastating fire that killed or critically injured hundreds of children.
Under normal circumstances, there is no logical reason to assign importance to messages from such pages. These platforms often post vague predictions that sometimes coincidentally match real events in volatile environments. However, in this particular case, after examining the technical details, such as the timestamp, page transparency, and whether the post was edited later or substituted after being initially published as a different message, all evidence suggests that the post was indeed published the day before the event, and not tampered with.
So, while it’s still true that such messages often lack credibility, certain details surrounding this tragic crash have forced us to reconsider the significance of the warning.
A serious investigator or analyst never dismisses any lead outright. They give weight to everythingโand at the same time, they believe nothing until the final piece of the puzzle confirms the full picture.
In present-day Bangladeshโwith a highly unstable state apparatus, increasing foreign and covert intelligence interference, questions surrounding sovereignty, and powerful crosscurrents attempting to reshape the countryโs constitution, identity, and bordersโsuch a message demands closer attention.
Furthermore, about a month ago, another video surfaced from a hacker group claiming to be Anonymous Global South. In that video, they made direct threats against Biman Bangladesh Airlines, claiming that they had compromised the communication systems of its top officials and possessed significant volumes of electronic communications. Since August 5 last year, numerous Bangladesh Air Force officials have been involved in the operations of Biman, so itโs not impossible that the groupโs intelligence channels could have access to military circles as well.
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These so-called “white hat” hackers rarely release direct or fully traceable information, as it would expose them legally. Instead, they often deliver coded warnings. For example, they might know that a jet will crash into a school, but instead, theyโll say: โA school building will collapse.โ Their motive isn’t always to protect livesโrather, itโs often to signal their adversaries: โWe know what youโre planning.โ
Letโs now take a look at the actual message posted the day before the jet crash:
“A school building will collapse, leaving lots of kids lifeless. We see a terrible disaster fast coming. This will be a result of poor maintenance on the building. We shall do everything in our power to avert this terrible catastrophe weโve seen coming. This is the Architect!”
In Bengali, it roughly translates to “A school building will collapse, causing the deaths of many children. We see a terrible disaster fast approaching. It will result from poor maintenance of the building. We shall do everything in our power to prevent the disaster we see coming. This is the Architect!”
As noted earlier, such messages are often incomplete or symbolic. Letโs examine some key terms in this message:
โSchool buildingโ
โMany childrenโ
โLoss of lifeโ
โCollapseโ
โTerrible disasterโ
โPoor maintenanceโ
โThe Architectโ
The post is metaphorical. It speaks of a โcollapse due to poor maintenanceโ leading to a โterrible disasterโ and the loss of many childrenโs lives. The signature โThe Architectโ is particularly significantโa cryptic term that could point to an insider or mastermind or someone aware of an impending event and attempting to send a secretive signal.
Remarkably, nearly all of the 48 words in the message align with what happened the next day.
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Now, letโs talk about the crash itself:
The Aircraft: The F-7 BGIโa Chinese-manufactured modern fighter trainer jet with a fuel capacity of about 4,000 litres. Depending on the nature of the training exercise, it may not have had a full tank, but even half a tank would carry nearly 1,000 litres of jet fuel.
When such a jet crashes, its biggest danger is not the impact but the fireball. Upon hitting the surface, the aircraft’s remaining fuel is expelled at high velocity and ignited almost instantly due to either the heat of impact or contact with the jet engine’s exhaust temperature (which can exceed 1,500โ2,000ยฐC).
This means that a fireball of ignited fuel likely blasted through the front doors and windows of the school, directly hitting the students. A similar phenomenon occurred during the 9/11 Twin Tower attacks in the U.S., where burning jet fuel engulfed the buildings, melting steel and killing thousands.
Looking at the structure of Milestone School:
Itโs a long, two-storey building with a large open field in front.
The aircraft hit the building directly at its centre, at a 0-degree angleโstraight on.
The buildingโs design was prison-like, with metal grills even on the balconies and no rear exitsโcreating a death trap for children once the fire started.
Examining the flight path, it appears the aircraft was meant to circle areas like Rampura before returning to land. The precise alignment with this schoolโhitting it dead centreโis highly suspicious (see satellite images for context).
The key question:
Whether it was an accident, sabotage, or conspiracyโdid the hacker group Anonymous somehow gain knowledge of the event through cyber intelligence?
Let me be clear:
This analysis does not aim to conclude anything.
The pilot of the ill-fated aircraft is no longer alive and cannot speak for himself. That responsibility falls to us.
Likewise, we must not fabricate theories about the cause of death for the children who perished or are fighting for their lives. But we must explore every angle.
To fail to investigate this crashโor to overlook potential signs of conspiracyโwould be to aid in the deaths of these innocents, just as the Bangladesh Armed Forces have historically been accused of doing.
Sirajul Hossain: Political Analyst, Technology Expert, and Socio-Psychological Research Consultant
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