Bangladesh faces a deepening crisis of Islamic radicalisation and escalating violence against religious minorities, especially Hindus, under the interim government headed by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.
This surge aligns with concerns raised in a recent op-ed by distinguished journalist Uzay Bulut, published on the Gatestone Institute website on December 23, 2025, titled “‘The Bangladesh Hindu Genocide’: Radical Islam in Bangladesh.”
Bulut, a Turkish journalist and Distinguished Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute, calls for the incoming Trump Administration to designate Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation and to hold Yunus accountable for enabling extremism.
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The most recent incident highlights the brutality: On December 18, a mob lynched 27-year-old Hindu garment worker Dipu Chandra Das in Mymensingh after false blasphemy accusations from co-workers. Das, his family’s sole provider, was beaten, hanged from a tree, and burned amid cries of “Allahu Akbar.” Authorities found no evidence of blasphemy, yet impunity persists.
This attack unfolded amid unrest after radical leader Sharif Osman Hadi’s death, sparking arson at media and cultural sites emblematic of Bengali secular heritage.
In early December, assailants slit the throats of an elderly Hindu couple, Jogesh Chandra Roy, a 1971 Liberation War veteran, and his wife, Suborna Roy, in Rangpur. No arrests followed.
Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das, a prominent minority rights advocate and former ISKCON member, remains jailed on sedition charges from an October rally. His detention has ignited protests and fears of broader crackdowns.
Since Yunus took power in August 2024, extremists have gained ground. The regime lifted the Jamaat-e-Islami banโa party tied to 1971 atrocitiesโand freed over 144 militants linked to Al-Qaeda groups, including Ansarullah Bangla Team leader Jashimuddin Rahmani.
Jamaat’s financial clout, via Gulf-funded banks like Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd., supports parallel structures fueling militancy. Groups like Hizb ut-Tahrir staged large caliphate rallies, such as the violent March 2025 event in Dhaka.
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The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council reports over 2,442 minority attacks from August 2024 to June 2025, including temple desecrations and assaults on women. Yunus has often dismissed these as exaggerated.
As Bulut warns in her Gatestone Institute piece, Al-Qaeda and Islamic State affiliates exploit the chaos, praising anti-secular “resistance.” International calls mount for US action against Jamaat-e-Islami, minority protections tied to UN roles, and accountability for Yunus.
With elections looming, this radical surgeโfueled by regime policiesโendangers Bangladesh’s 1971 secular legacy. Urgent global intervention is needed to curb jihadist empowerment and protect vulnerable communities.
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