09 September 2017
- RSIS
- Media Mentions
- Plight of Myanmar’s Rohingya: Militant Islam’s next Rallying Call?
Protests condemning Myanmar’s violence against the Rohingya are stirring deep-seated emotions across the Muslim world that could backfire on governments and fuel radicalisation.
Thousands marched this week in Muslim cities across the globe, including Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, and Grozny demanding an end to what they termed genocide. Glaringly absent from the list were Middle Eastern capitals.
Calls for jihad in defence of the Muslim minority prompt fears of a second front against Islamic State-linked fighters in Southeast Asia, and – for Arab leaders – concerns the issue will re-energise militants and opposition groups alike.
… James M. Dorsey is a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies and the author of The Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer blog
RSIS / Print / Online