“How Yunus’s regime has driven Bangladeshi Army towards internal rift and radicalisation”, First Post, October 24, 2025
”Bangladesh’s armed forces are facing one of the deepest crises in their history. On Wednesday, October 22, 2025, Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal sent 15 serving military officers to jail to face trial on charges of enforced disappearances, murders, and custodial torture during then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s regime, raising fears of ideological infiltration, political manipulation, and growing foreign influence. What was once a quiet discontent inside the barracks has now erupted into a public crisis that could reshape not only the future of the Bangladesh Army but also regional stability in South Asia.
Fractured Command and Competing Factions
The immediate controversy stems from two long-pending cases of alleged enforced disappearances and torture dating back to the previous regime. The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has demanded their transfer to civilian jurisdiction, while the army insists that any proceedings must remain under military law. This disagreement has opened an unprecedented institutional rift.
Chief of Army Staff General Waker-Uz-Zaman has attempted to balance competing camps within the institution, but his neutrality has backfired. Officers privately complain that his indecision has blurred the chain of command. Traditionally unified and professional, the army now appears split into three broad camps: a reformist faction seeking institutional modernisation, an Islamist-leaning bloc with ideological ties to Jamaat-e-Islami, and a smaller but vocal group that continues to champion the spirit of the 1971 Liberation War…….”
Read full article at firstpost.com
