For A Just Cause: Exploring Bangladesh’s Policy Towards Palestine – OpEd
During the recently held 19th Meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD), Bangladeshi lawmaker and former Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam strongly condemned ongoing Israeli atrocities against Palestinian civilians, demanded an end to the Israeli invasion of Gaza, and reiterated Bangladesh’s support for the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Bangladesh is located more than 5,000 km away from Palestine, and Dhaka has little economic, political or strategic stakes in that country. Yet, since its independence, Bangladesh has consistently supported the Palestinian cause. This illustrates a shining example of pursuing a moral foreign policy on the part of Dhaka.
Why Bangladesh Supports Palestine
First, Bangladesh’s unconditional support for the Palestinian cause is rooted in its constitutional provisions. According to Article 25 of the Constitution of Bangladesh, the state is duty-bound to “support oppressed people throughout the world waging a just struggle against imperialism, colonialism or racialism.” Since 1948, the Palestinians have been consistently oppressed by Israel, and they have been subjected to all sorts of crimes, including ethnic cleansing, massacres, mass deportations, sexual assault, demolition of houses, ecocide, scholasticide, cultural genocide, illegal detention, inhuman treatment of prisoners, strict restrictions on movement, mass surveillance, and illegal taxation. Numerous scholars have characterized Israel as a settler-colonial state.
Moreover, under international law, Israel illegally occupies West Bank and maintains a de facto occupation of the Gaza Strip. In fact, Israel has been proclaimed a ‘Jewish nation-state,’ and it has developed a system of apartheid against the Palestinians. Accordingly, the struggle of the Palestinians is a struggle against Israeli occupation, settler-colonialism and racism. Hence, Bangladesh supports the Palestinian cause.
Second, the Bangladeshi struggle for independence and the Palestinian struggle for freedom share striking similarities. Before its independence in 1971, Bangladesh had to endure more than two decades of institutionalized Pakistani discrimination, followed by one of the most brutal genocides in history. Similarly, Palestine is struggling against Israeli oppression and occupation for more than seven decades. Hence, Bangladesh finds the Palestinian struggle similar to its own, and feels sympathetic towards it.
Finally, both the Bangladeshis and the Palestinians are Muslim-majority nations, and owing to religious affinity, the Bangladeshis are sympathetic to the Palestinian cause. However, religion is not the only factor which motivates Bangladesh to support the Palestinian cause. The plight of the Palestinians evokes strong sympathy among Bangladeshis of all political persuasion, including leftists, centrists, and rightists. In fact, the continuation of the support for the Palestinians and the non-recognition of Israel are among the few issues on which a political consensus can be reached among the major political parties in Bangladesh.
Support for the Palestinian Cause: Historical Dynamics
During the Bangladeshi War of Independence in 1971, Israel offered to accord diplomatic recognition to the Bangladeshi government-in-exile and to supply the Bangladesh Forces with military equipment, but the Bangladeshi government-in-exile, despite pressing needs for diplomatic and military support, turned down the offer in solidarity with the Palestinians. After the victory of Bangladesh in the war, Israel recognized Bangladesh on 7 February 1972, but Bangladesh again rejected the offer. Instead, Bangladesh expressed its complete and unconditional support for the Palestinians. Bangladesh supported the Arab states during the Arab–Israeli War in 1973, demonstrating solidarity with the Arabs and the Palestinians. During the war, Bangladesh sent dozens of military medics and some 50 tons of tea to Egypt and Syria.
In February 1974, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman met the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Yasser Arafat in the Pakistani city of Lahore during the second summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and reiterated Bangladesh’s support for the Palestinians. Upon Bangladesh’s inclusion in the United Nations (UN) in September 1974, the state has consistently upheld the Palestinian cause at the international body. In 1976, the PLO opened a representative office in Dhaka, and afterwards, PLO officials were regularly hosted by Bangladeshi officials and diplomats. Yasser Arafat became a frequent guest in Bangladesh, with the country hosting him 13 times between 1981 and 1987. Since the early 1980s, the Bangladesh Military Academy (BMA) has been training to PLO troops, and later, the Palestinian National Security Forces personnel.
In the late 1970s, hundreds of Bangladeshi citizens started travelling to Lebanon, and joined different factions of the PLO, including the Fatah and the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command (PFLP-GC). In 1982, Israel invaded and occupied Lebanon in order to destroy the PLO. Bangladesh strongly condemned the Israeli invasion, and Bangladeshi volunteer fighters in that country actively fought against the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Several Bangladeshi fighters were killed, including Kamal Mustafa Ali, who was killed during a battle against Israeli forces in southern Lebanon on 22 July 1982. According to the IDF, some 400 Bangladeshi fighters were captured by Israeli troops in Lebanon in 1982. By 1987, about 8,000 Bangladeshi citizens had fought on the side of the PLO, and more than 100 were killed. Thus, Bangladeshis made the supreme sacrifice for the Palestinian cause.
Bangladesh consistently supported the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. On 16 November 1988, Bangladesh recognized the independence of Palestine immediately after the Palestinian Declaration of Independence a day earlier. Accordingly, the PLO representative office in Dhaka was transformed into the Palestinian Embassy. After China and India established diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992, Israel again pushed for normalization with Bangladesh, but its overtures were again rebuffed. While a few Bangladeshis have advocated for the normalization of ties with Israel, the Bangladeshi government and the overwhelming majority of the population are strongly opposed to the proposition. Bangladesh maintains that it would not recognize Israel until the complete de-occupation of the Palestinian territories. In fact, Bangladesh has punished some of its citizens, including journalist Salahuddin Shoaib Chowdhury and opposition politician Aslam Chowdhury, for maintaining ties with Israel. Meanwhile, Bangladesh has repeatedly condemned Israeli violence against the Palestinians, notably in 2009, 2014, 2014 and 2021.
Bangladeshi Support for Palestine: Current Scenario
At present, Bangladesh maintains its principled position on Palestine and continues to support the Palestinian cause. The state has a modest trade partnership with Palestine, and has concluded several agreements on economic cooperation with the latter. Bangladesh regularly trains Palestinian military personnel at the BMA. Moreover, Bangladesh currently hosts some 100 Palestinian students, with most of them studying medical sciences. In addition, some Palestinians live in Bangladesh, and there are several mixed Bangladeshi–Palestinian families as well.
Following the Israeli invasion of Gaza in October 2023, Bangladesh has repeatedly condemned Israeli atrocities against Palestinian civilians, and restated its support for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Numerous Bangladeshi organizations, including the ruling party, Islamist and leftist parties, and civil society organizations, have organized rallies to protest the Israeli invasion. Bangladesh has sent several batches of humanitarian aid, including food and medical supplies, for the people of Gaza in an effort to lessen their sufferings. Also, the University of Dhaka and Daffodil International University have offered scholarships for Palestinian students. Moreover, Bangladesh has supported the South African-initiated case of genocide against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Meanwhile, Bangladeshi citizens have organized an increasingly effective boycott of Coca-Cola products following the outbreak of war in Gaza. Thus, Bangladesh is providing Palestine with substantial diplomatic and moral support in its struggle against Israeli occupation.
Conclusion
In an interview with bdnews24.com, Palestinian Ambassador to Bangladesh Yousef Ramadan had commented that if all Muslim states had supported Palestine as Bangladesh had done, Palestine would have been free long ago. This succinctly sums up Bangladesh’s contribution to the Palestinian cause. Thus, Bangladesh’s support for Palestine, rooted in ideological, cultural and constitutional reasons, demonstrates that it is possible to pursue a moral and humanitarian foreign policy, even if limited to some particular spheres, in a Machiavellian and strictly pragmatic world.