South Asian Strategic Affairs Forum-SASAF

28/01/2026

https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh-election-2026/us-ready-work-any-govt-elected-bangladeshi-people-envoy-1346181

Christensen said he was very much looking forward to the upcoming polls and to seeing their outcome.

09/01/2026

Read More.https://timesofislamabad.com/09-Jan-2026/pakistan-advances-trilateral-cooperation-with-china-and-bangladesh

09/01/2026

Forecasts suggest that global heating could create a shortcut from Asia to North America, and new routes for trading, shipping – and attack, writes Gaby Hinsliff

09/01/2026

09/01/2026

Hadi killing: A charge sheet that fails us

TBF Analysis

Something is severely lacking in the charge sheet the police have submitted in Osman Hadi killing case. Naming 17 people as accused and citing “political vendetta” as the motive, it seems to have washed its hands of many grave issues. It has dragged down the killing to the level of petty crimes that happen every day.

But the question is: was Hadi just another person, his killing just another addition to the daily toll of unnatural deaths? This is where those probing the case have missed the mark.

No doubt, Hadi was a stern critic of the deposed Awami regime and its patron India. But that does not make one killable. There have been many critics of Awami League and India in this country. But they are not eliminated. Rather, some of them are said to be paid to make such criticisms as will not hit the main edifice of hegemony.

Then why Hadi? Because, he was the young intellectual who could see all the roots and tentacles that India has spread in this country over the past more than fifty years. He not only could see them, he could also sort them and spell them out in common parlance, and get them across to the masses.

Quite unlike the ivory tower intellectuals, he used to be very close to the people in the street. He knew them and they got to know him deeply. They loved him deeply. This close interaction with the masses, combined with his own study of history and culture, had given him an insight into what is local and what is alien - a kind of discovery of his Muslim and Bangladeshi identities.

But, why would the Indian hegemony allow this self-discovery? It would rather swallow some bitter criticisms than allow space for self-identify.

So, the charge sheet that chants “political vendetta” as the motive only makes a mockery of the graver issues underlying the killing of Hadi. It’s not just 17 people; it’s the whole racket of those who planned and executed the killing and helped the killers leave the country safely without having to face any hindrance.

It is unfortunate that a government that came to power on the wave of blood of thousands could be so nonchalant about the killing of one of its champions.

A rude awakening is awaiting us.

09/01/2026

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/9/why-is-pakistan-selling-its-jf-17-fighter-jets-to-bangladesh-and-others?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=socialPulse&fbclid=IwdGRzaAPNxddjbGNrA83D8GV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHkKse_LlvGjuPxuTjeLxj7D-BpWiskFAzH-TMu3lhWucLUyS-O0cWKbSpCqq_aem_ov-8udiaE-tjQ1Kvr-sl9A&sfnsn=mo

Islamabad’s defence diplomacy is driving new interest in the JF-17 fighter jet following Pakistan-India clashes.

09/01/2026

Exclusive: Pakistan nears $1.5 billion deal to supply weapons, jets to Sudan, sources say

Click the link in the comments below.

09/01/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/1EzWnYpt59/

The air chief of Bangladesh on Thursday discussed avenues for enhancing defence cooperation with Pakistan in separate meetings with Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf.

Bangladesh Air Force Air Chief Marshal (ACM) Hasan Mahmood Khan called on CDF Munir at the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a press release.

“During the meeting, matters of mutual interest, regional security dynamics and avenues for enhancing bilateral defence and military cooperation were discussed,” the statement read.

Read more: https://www.dawn.com/news/1965824

08/01/2026

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.arabnews.com/node/2628535/amp

ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s air force top commander met Pakistan’s air chief in Saudi Arabia to discuss opportunities to expand military cooperation between the two longtime allies, the ministry of defense in Riyadh said on Wednesday. The meeting brought together two senior military leaders from l...