US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, on Monday, spoke with Interim Bangladesh chief Muhammad Yunus when both leaders expressed their commitment to respecting and protecting the human rights of all people in the country, amid rising atrocities committed against minorities in the Muslim-majority South Asian nation.
The White House issued a statement on the interaction between the two leaders which read: “National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke today with Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, head of the Interim Government of Bangladesh. Mr. Sullivan thanked Chief Adviser Yunus for his leadership of Bangladesh during a challenging period.”
“Both leaders expressed their commitment to respecting and protecting the human rights of all people, regardless of religion,” the statement said.
“Mr. Sullivan re-iterated the United States’ support for a prosperous, stable, and democratic Bangladesh, and offered the United States’ continued support in meeting the challenges Bangladesh faces,” the White House said.
The interaction took place between the two leaders just weeks before Donald Trump is set to assume charge as the 47th US President.
Minorities in Bangladesh, especially Hindus, have been targeted by radicals ever since former PM Sheikh Hasina resigned and escaped to India amid severe protests against her government on August 5.
The attacks on minorities have spiked during the tenure of the interim government, which took charge of the country on August 8.
Meanwhile, India has received a verbal note from Bangladesh in connection with an extradition request for Hasina, NDTV reported quoting sources.
“We confirm that we have received a note verbale from the Bangladesh High Commission today in connection with an extradition request. At this time, we have no comment to offer on this matter,” NDTV quoted the source as saying.
A note verbale is an unsigned diplomatic message in the third person.
Earlier, in the day, Bangladesh’s de facto Foreign Minister, Touhid Hossain, said Dhaka wants Hasina back to face trial. “We have sent a note verbale to the Indian government saying that Bangladesh wants her back here for the judicial process,” Hossain told reporters in Dhaka.
However, India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has not commented on the matter.
The Bangladesh-based International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has issued arrest warrants against Hasina, her former ministers, advisers, and military and civil officials over “crimes against humanity and genocide”.
Bangladesh Home Adviser Jahangir Alam said his office sent a letter to the MEA to allow Hasina’s extradition from India.
Hasina, who was the longest-serving PM of Bangladesh, faced protests over a controversial job quota and soon it spiralled into a massive agitation against her regime.
Hasina had returned to power for another term after winning the general polls in January.
In a virtual address at an event in New York earlier this month, Hasina claimed that there were plans to assassinate her and her sister Sheikh Rehana, just like their father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the other family members, who were assassinated in 1975.
She made the claims during her first public address after taking shelter in India following her resignation in August.
Referring to the attack on her official residence in Dhaka on August 5, Hasina had said: “The armed protestors were directed towards Ganabhaban. If the security guards opened fire, many lives would have been lost. It was a matter of 25-30 minutes, and I was forced to leave. I told them [guards] not to fire no matter what happened.”
“Today, I am being accused of genocide. In reality, Yunus has been involved in genocide in a meticulously designed manner. The masterminds — the student coordinators and Yunus — are behind this genocide,” she said.
