Opinion | Why China’s belt and road plan is facing threat of jihadist terrorism
- Jihadists such as Isis-K are taking rhetorical aim at China’s expanding economic footprint, rather than its treatment of Uygurs
- Following the US pull-out from Afghanistan, the Taliban regime’s silence on Uygurs and ties with China have left a vacuum for Isis-K to fill
As global geopolitics progresses from the era of war on terror to the US-China competition, the transnational jihadist threat to China has also evolved. For the last two decades, the United States was the main target of global jihadist groups for invading Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. However, now China seems to be at the receiving end of jihadist rhetoric, particularly from Isis and al-Shabab.
Until recently, jihadist groups such as al-Qaeda and Isis targeted China in their extremist propaganda for suppressing the Uygur Muslim community in the Western Xinjiang region. However, their narrative is now focused on China’s “imperialism”, as evidenced by the Belt and Road Initiative.
As jihadists take rhetorical aim at China’s expanding economic footprint, rather than its persecution of the Uygur community, the shift brings into sharp focus the evolution of global jihadism in the age of US-China rivalry.
As early as 2014, jihadist ideologue Abu Zar al-Burmi had targeted Chinese foreign policy. After the US announcement of troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, he issued a video titled “Let’s disturb China”, saying Washington had lost the war in Afghanistan, and it was time to focus on Beijing, a rising global player.
