Amid ongoing protests in Bangladesh, a collage of three images is being shared, alleging that Bangladeshi Muslims vandalized Buddhist statues (here & here). In this article, we’ll check the validity of these claims.
Claim: Images showing the vandalism of Buddhist statues by Muslims during the ongoing protests in Bangladesh.
Fact: These images are all old and are most likely related to the attacks on Buddhist temples that occurred in Bangladesh in 2012. While there are reports of attacks on minorities during the current unrest in Bangladesh, the viral images are not related to these incidents. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
Bangladesh has witnessed deadly protests that began in July 2024 as an anti-quota movement. Recently, these mass protests have evolved into a major anti-government uprising. The situation escalated when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country. Protesters forcefully entered her official residence in Dhaka, looting and vandalizing the premises (here & here).
Reports indicate that mobs have attacked the homes and businesses of minorities, particularly Hindus, looting their valuables (here). There are also reports of Hindu homes and temples being vandalized and set on fire (here).
While the images currently going viral are indeed from Bangladesh, they are old and unrelated to the ongoing protests. Let’s examine the context of each image individually below.
Image 1:
A reverse image search of this photo led us to several old social media posts that featured the same image (here, here & here). One post from 2023 claimed that the image dates back to 2012 when extremists attacked Buddhist towns in Bangladesh, destroying monasteries and homes.
Further investigation revealed reports of Muslims vandalizing Buddhist shrines and homes in 2012 after a photo of a partially burned Quran was posted on Facebook (here & here). Although we couldn’t confirm that this specific viral image is linked to the 2012 incident, its presence on the internet indicates that it is not connected to the current protests.
Image 2:
A reverse image search of this photo led us to a few blog posts from 2013 that featured the same image (here & here). These blogs claim the image depicts a burnt Buddhist temple in Ramu, Cox’s Bazar.
Image 3:
A reverse image search of this photo directed us to a Facebook post from May 2013, which shared the same image with a caption stating that Bangladeshi Muslims had torched Buddhist temples. The post also included news reports about attacks on Buddhists in Bangladesh that took place in 2012.
To sum up, old images are being circulated alleging that Muslims vandalized Buddhist statues during the ongoing protests in Bangladesh in 2024.
