China targeted by ETIM militancy led by Uighurs
China’s less known terror outfit
The single point source for shaking the Red Dragon has been the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, reported to have been established in 1999 by Hasan Mahsum (Uighurof origin).
After Hasan Mahsum was killed by Pakistani forces in 2003, the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) arose as a successor, having a nexus with Al-Quaeda and operating from the tribal areas of Pakistan.
The main objective of ETIM was to liberate and establish an independent state called East Turkestan, consisting of parts of Turkey, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR).
Terror attacks in China
Although ETIM arose around 1999 (as reported by non-Chinese sources), China has reportedly inculpated ETIM since the first bomb attack in Xinjiang province in 1992, led by a separatist faction.
The Uighurs, being a Turkish ethnic Islamic community residing in Xinjiang since the origin of the Communist Party of China, had a smoldering agenda to seek autonomy, which was denied consistently by all the Chinese regimes.
Although the claims of Chinese sources reveal mitigating the Uighur issue since 2009 (which is shrouded in persecution from the global viewpoint), the actual timeline can be far earlier than the purported one.
Hence, it could be speculated that China had been trying to quell the Uighur uprising even before the 1990s, which erupted in a series of public attacks in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2007, 2008, 2009, and several others till 2016.
Thus, it is extremely possible that the Uighurs of the Xinjiang province were polarized by the ETIM (TIP) post-200 by exploiting their miserable state.
China’s smart strategy of self-shielding
- China being very cautious on Islamic militancy and conflicts with India, it carefully aligned with Pakistan since the 1971 Indo-Pak war and fended Pakistan in several instances:-
- by making surreptitious investments in the form of CPEC (commenced in 2010).
- By using its veto status to block the listing of Pak-linked terrorists on the UN 1267 sanction committee,
– LeT commander Ajmal Kasab on 17 Sep 2022,
– LeT militant “Abdul Rehman Makki” on Jun 2022,
– JeM militant “Masood Azhar” on 2019,
Pakistan is silent over Uighur Muslims’ persecution in the Xinjiang province and, contrary to its protest against Islamophobia, it has defended China on platforms such as the Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC).
Credits: Hindustan Times
- China is assured of recognizing the Taliban regime if they cooperate in eliminating ETIM/TIP militancy.
Retaliation of ETIM (TIP)
- In Turkey TIP had carried out strikes on a nightclub in Turkey on New year’s Eve of 2016, being disgruntled with the support of the Turkish Government to criticize China.
- Being exploited by the Chinese debt trap and unfavoring China’s any native business around CPEC in Balochistan province, the Balochistan Liberation Army conducted attacked CPEC topic 2020 and, Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) (the opposition party) has strictly condemned the Chinese loan policy.
- ETIM has even conducted strikes on the Taliban for acceding to China in mid-2021.
China’s over risks
Derelict Uighurs wandering to reach Turkey and Syria with counterfeit travel documents have been detained in Vietnam, Indonesia, Malay, and Thailand, and some are even reported to have colluded with local insurgents like Mujahideen Indonesia Timur (MIT).
The Uighurs attacked the Chinese embassy in Kyrgyzstan on August 30, 2022.
Despite the crisis led by Uighur militants, ISIS, and Al-Quaeda in Syria, China remained bland against the global counter-terror operations, preferring not to enkindle its native issue.
The well-advanced TIP has built a nexus with Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), ISIS, and other regional terror outfits and has sparked the global media very recently in Feb 2022.
According to the media reports of March 2018, the recruitment of Uighur Muslims into TIP had intensified under the shadow of ISIS, with tender-aged boys issuing radical statements against the Chinese government.
The course of correction
China has less time to wait and strategize, and it is very evident from the historical instances that violent insurrections can even surmount great regimes (with Afghanistan being a good illustration). Therefore, China can no longer deceive by its facade but be rational.
The debt trap policy and chauvinistic employment preference will eventually be displeased by the world, leading to untrusted remarks on its foreign diplomacy, which needs to be reformed.
The persecution in Xinjiang province must be stopped and followed up with mitigating measures to focus on human development.
The unauthorized intrusions of CPEC into the PoK region don’t augur well for India’s plans to extend cooperation in anti-terror operations. Added with the border issues that are frequently erupting.
What could be the prolonged impact of anti-China militancy on CPEC?
Comment your views below. Thankyou
Read More—
- ETIM is all set to launch massive strikes on Chinese assets all across Pakistan and Central Asia.
- After Paris Attacks, China Seeks More International Help Fighting Xinjiang Separatists.
- Militant group ETIM, which has been targeted by China, is still active in Afghanistan.
- Wion Wideangle | China and the Taliban: friends with benefits.
- China Is Jihadis’ New Target.
- Al-Qaeda and Islamic State Take Aim at China.
- The Islamic State Just Threatened China. What Will Beijing Do?
- Is China’s Uyghur Challenge Changing Its Calculus on Syria? – The Diplomat.
- China’s Nightmare: Xinjiang Jihadists Go Global – The Diplomat.
- Terrorism – China travel advice.
