No, the U.S. was not responsible for the July uprising.

On September 30, the controversial news site The Grayzone dramatically published a story titled: "Leaked files expose covert US government plot to ‘destabilize Bangladesh’s politics.'" However, the Dhaka Tribune has since revealed that the IRI report, which served as the basis for the article’s explosive claims, was altered. The damaging language in the PDF linked by The Grayzone did not appear in the original IRI document.

The Grayzone article claimed that leaked documents showed the US-funded International Republican Institute (IRI) had trained activists, including LGBTQI people, to help trigger a "power shift" in Bangladesh and destabilize its politics, even hosting transgender dance performances. These assertions were seen as highly implausible by those familiar with the country’s political landscape, raising immediate doubts about the article's credibility.

According to Shahab Enam Khan, a professor of international relations at Jahangirnagar University, the report raised serious concerns. He noted that the IRI's mission is to work transparently with political parties to promote democracy and electoral processes. 

Despite this, the article was widely shared by groups with vested interests in portraying the uprising and interim government in Bangladesh as US-controlled, undermining both the popular movement and the new leadership. 

The Grayzone’s report was built entirely around a single IRI document from a democracy promotion project that ended in 2020—years before Sheikh Hasina’s removal. While the IRI report aimed to increase political participation in Bangladesh, it contained no controversial material, except for a sentence fragment allegedly stating that IRI had “identified over 170 democratic activists who would cooperate with IRI to destabilize Bangladesh’s politics.” Dhaka Tribune confirmed that this sentence was doctored, and the actual report contained no such claim.

Without this fabricated sentence, The Grayzone article collapses, revealing itself as a piece of propaganda against the July uprising and offering no credible insights into the political situation in Bangladesh.

The piece also falsely claimed that social media played a significant role in fueling anti-Awami League sentiment, but a Dismislab investigation uncovered that a political bot network was operating on Facebook in favor of the Awami League itself.

The Grayzone, known for its criticism of US foreign policy and support for authoritarian regimes, has been widely criticized for spreading disinformation, and this article is yet another example of its biased reporting.