As many as seven Bangladeshi nationals were arrested by police in Indian state of West Bengal for trespassing into the Indian territory on Thursday.&nbsp; 
 
The seven persons were arrested from the Indo-Bangla international border in Bongaon&rsquo;s RS Math area of West Bengal after they failed to produce valid documents.&nbsp; 
 
Officials said three persons, among the seven trespassers, were carrying Indian voter identity card with the same picture but different names and particulars&nbsp; 
 
&ldquo;We have arrested seven Bangladeshi nationals for illegally trespassing into India. The arrested have been identified as Kamal Sheikh, Rubia Begum, Iqbal Mollah, Md Nasir, Jahidul Sarif, Md Mir Amir, Pannu Sikder. The seven arrested comprise six men and one woman with an infant. All are residents of Faridpur in Bangladesh and their ages range between 19 and 35. We have lodged a case against them,&rdquo; said a senior police of the Bongaon Police Station.&nbsp; 
 
&ldquo;We had intelligence inputs about some people who had come to India from Bangladesh in the last couple days. We have tightened vigil along the border and police stations across the border area have been kept on high alert,&quot; he added.&nbsp; 
 
Security arrangements across the border areas have been tightened by the Indian security agencies. The Border Security Force (BSF) and state police have beefed up security to prevent any illegal migration or trespassing into the Indian territory from Bangladesh.&nbsp; 
 
Besides West Bengal, four more states -- &nbsp;Assam, Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya --- that share border with the neighbouring country have been kept on high alert following the Dhaka attack last month.&nbsp; 
 
The Indo-Bangla border is 4,096 Kilometre with West Bengal having the highest length with 2,217 Kilometre. 
 
(WION) 
&nbsp;

The seven were arrested in the Indo-Bangla international border region after they failed to produce valid documents

As many as seven Bangladeshi nationals were arrested by police in Indian state of West Bengal for trespassing into the Indian territory on Thursday. The seven persons were arrested from the Indo-Bangla international border in Bongaon’s RS Math area of West Bengal after they failed to produce valid documents. Officials said three persons, among the seven trespassers, were carrying Indian voter identity card with the same picture but different names and particulars “We have arrested seven Bangladeshi nationals for illegally trespassing into India. The arrested have been identified as Kamal Sheikh, Rubia Begum, Iqbal Mollah, Md Nasir, Jahidul Sarif, Md Mir Amir, Pannu Sikder. The seven arrested comprise six men and one woman with an infant. All are residents of Faridpur in Bangladesh and their ages range between 19 and 35. We have lodged a case against them,” said a senior police of the Bongaon Police Station. “We had intelligence inputs about some people who had come to India from Bangladesh in the last couple days. We have tightened vigil along the border and police stations across the border area have been kept on high alert," he added. Security arrangements across the border areas have been tightened by the Indian security agencies. The Border Security Force (BSF) and state police have beefed up security to prevent any illegal migration or trespassing into the Indian territory from Bangladesh. Besides West Bengal, four more states -- Assam, Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya --- that share border with the neighbouring country have been kept on high alert following the Dhaka attack last month. The Indo-Bangla border is 4,096 Kilometre with West Bengal having the highest length with 2,217 Kilometre. (WION)

Seven Bangladeshi nationals arrested for illegally trespassing into India

The startup ecosystem of Bangladesh is growing at a fast pace. The country presents an unexplored market for young startups to innovate and disrupt. 
 
Here is a roundup of Bangladesh&#39;s most promising startups. 
 
Technolive 
Technolive is a news aggregator app which compiles news in real time from various websites and social media. This app uses machine learning algorithms for monitoring the news. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/screen%20shot%202016-09-05%20at%206.03.28%20pm-20160906054856.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
The Tech Lab 
The Tech Lab aims to reinvent Bangladesh&rsquo;s education system. It is an engineering institute catered towards Bangladeshi children. The Tech Lab provides courses on programming, electronics, robotics, and mechanical engineering among others. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/screen%20shot%202016-09-05%20at%206.04.55%20pm-20160906055852.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
Unigigg 
Unigigg provides a platform that connects students with their potential employers with an aim to popularize unconventional jobs like photography in the Bangladeshi society. This startup is currently in its alpha testing phase and is getting a very positive response. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/screen%20shot%202016-09-05%20at%206.06.14%20pm-20160906060709.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
Branoo 
Branoo is an e-commerce startup catering to men, women and kids alike with a wide variety of products from various brands. They have their own warehouse to store products. Branoo offers several payment modes to the customers. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/aaeaaqaaaaaaaaicaaaajdg2yja0ztvkltvmodgtndm2ns1izmrllwy4nmyynwjknznioa-20160906060846.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
Track My Vehicle 
Track My Vehicle is a startup which aims to address one of the biggest problems of Bangladesh i.e. vehicle stealing. Using their mobile app or website, the customers can get the reports on their vehicles&rsquo; speed, location, and other important statistics. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/track-my-vehicle-20160906061004.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
 
 
&nbsp;
</div>
 
Bongo 
Bangladesh&rsquo;s video-on-demand startup, Bongo, is popularly called the country&rsquo;s very own version of Netflix. It is an entertainment catalog with a library of over 30,000 movies, TV shows, dramas, music, etc. Bongo plans to extend its services to other countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal and the U.S. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/6cu6zrql-20160906061433.png" />
<div class="media-description">
 
 
&nbsp;
</div>
 
Buckets Engineer 
Buckets Engineer is a subscription-based service for the autistic kids in Bangladesh. The startup has created a hub of applications and tools so as to allow the parents, therapists and educators to undertake a dynamic approach and make the autistic children learn better. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/z4ws7ocr-20160906061611.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
 
 
 
 
Kokhon.com 
Kokhon is a website that is dedicated solely to aggregating events happening all over Bangladesh&rsquo;s capital &lsquo;Dhaka&rsquo;. The startup helps people by suggesting them about the relevant events happening in the city. The website can be customized by the users and organisers for a better experience.

 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/screen%20shot%202016-09-05%20at%206.14.00%20pm-20160906061805.png" />
</div>
 
Dam.com.bd 
Dam.com.bd is the first online shopping database of Bangladesh. It gathers and compares the price information of every single product in the market, helping the consumers to grab the best deal. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/dam.com.bd%20(1)-20160906062151.png" />
<div class="media-description">
 
 
&nbsp;
</div>
Zuumzuum 
Zuumzuum is an e-commerce platform for lifestyle shoppers who are looking for products from reputed brands at competitive prices throughout South Asian markets. It was founded by ex-Groupon member Rafi Mustafa. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/zuumzuum-20160906062023.png" />
<div class="media-description">
 
(WION Edge)
</div>

Here's a look at Bangladesh's young but fast-growing startup ecosystem.

The startup ecosystem of Bangladesh is growing at a fast pace. The country presents an unexplored market for young startups to innovate and disrupt. Here is a roundup of Bangladesh's most promising startups. Technolive Technolive is a news aggregator app which compiles news in real time from various websites and social media. This app uses machine learning algorithms for monitoring the news. The Tech Lab The Tech Lab aims to reinvent Bangladesh’s education system. It is an engineering institute catered towards Bangladeshi children. The Tech Lab provides courses on programming, electronics, robotics, and mechanical engineering among others. Unigigg Unigigg provides a platform that connects students with their potential employers with an aim to popularize unconventional jobs like photography in the Bangladeshi society. This startup is currently in its alpha testing phase and is getting a very positive response. Branoo Branoo is an e-commerce startup catering to men, women and kids alike with a wide variety of products from various brands. They have their own warehouse to store products. Branoo offers several payment modes to the customers. Track My Vehicle Track My Vehicle is a startup which aims to address one of the biggest problems of Bangladesh i.e. vehicle stealing. Using their mobile app or website, the customers can get the reports on their vehicles’ speed, location, and other important statistics. Bongo Bangladesh’s video-on-demand startup, Bongo, is popularly called the country’s very own version of Netflix. It is an entertainment catalog with a library of over 30,000 movies, TV shows, dramas, music, etc. Bongo plans to extend its services to other countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal and the U.S. Buckets Engineer Buckets Engineer is a subscription-based service for the autistic kids in Bangladesh. The startup has created a hub of applications and tools so as to allow the parents, therapists and educators to undertake a dynamic approach and make the autistic children learn better. Kokhon.com Kokhon is a website that is dedicated solely to aggregating events happening all over Bangladesh’s capital ‘Dhaka’. The startup helps people by suggesting them about the relevant events happening in the city. The website can be customized by the users and organisers for a better experience. Dam.com.bd Dam.com.bd is the first online shopping database of Bangladesh. It gathers and compares the price information of every single product in the market, helping the consumers to grab the best deal. Zuumzuum Zuumzuum is an e-commerce platform for lifestyle shoppers who are looking for products from reputed brands at competitive prices throughout South Asian markets. It was founded by ex-Groupon member Rafi Mustafa. (WION Edge)

10 hottest startups in Bangladesh to watch out for

Bangladesh&#39;s startup ecosystem is maturing at a fast pace, providing the young entrepreneurs a platform where they can innovate and disrupt. 
 
With an enthusiastic and tech-savvy Gen-Y, Bangladesh is emerging as one of the hottest startup hubs in Asia.&nbsp; 
 
Here&#39;s a round-up of 10 startups that are redefining the ecosystem in the South Asian country.&nbsp; 
 
Technolive 
 
Technolive is a news aggregator app which compiles news in real time from various websites and social media. This app uses machine learning algorithms for monitoring the news. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/screen%20shot%202016-09-05%20at%206.03.28%20pm-20160906054856.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
 
 
The Tech Lab 
 
The Tech Lab aims to reinvent Bangladesh&rsquo;s education system. It is an engineering institute catered towards Bangladeshi children. The Tech Lab provides courses on programming, electronics, robotics, and mechanical engineering among other courses. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/screen%20shot%202016-09-05%20at%206.04.55%20pm-20160906055852.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
 
Unigigg 
 
Unigigg provides a platform that connects students with their potential employers with an aim to popularise unconventional jobs like photography in the Bangladeshi society. This startup is currently in its alpha testing phase and is getting a very positive response. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/screen%20shot%202016-09-05%20at%206.06.14%20pm-20160906060709.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
 
Branoo 
 
Branoo is an e-commerce startup catering to men, women and kids alike with a wide variety of products from various brands. It has its own warehouse to store products. Branoo offers several payment modes to the customers. 
 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/aaeaaqaaaaaaaaicaaaajdg2yja0ztvkltvmodgtndm2ns1izmrllwy4nmyynwjknznioa-20160906060846.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
 
 
Track My Vehicle 
 
Track My Vehicle is a startup which aims to address one of the biggest problems of Bangladesh: vehicle stealing. 
 
Using the mobile app and website, the customers can get the reports on their vehicles&rsquo; speed, location, and other important statistics. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/track-my-vehicle-20160906061004.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
 
 
Bongo 
 
Bangladesh&rsquo;s video-on-demand startup, Bongo, is popularly called the country&rsquo;s very own version of Netflix. 
 
It is an entertainment catalog with a library of over 30,000 movies, TV shows and music videos. &nbsp;&nbsp;Bongo plans to extend its services to other countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal and the U.S. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/6cu6zrql-20160906061433.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
 
 
Buckets Engineer 
 
Buckets Engineer is a subscription-based service for the autistic kids in Bangladesh. 
 
The startup has created a hub of applications and tools so as to allow the parents, therapists and educators to undertake a dynamic approach and make the autistic children learn better. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/z4ws7ocr-20160906061611.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
 
 
Kokhon.com 
 
Kokhon is a website that is dedicated solely to aggregating events happening all over Bangladesh&rsquo;s capital &lsquo;Dhaka&rsquo;. 
 
The startup helps people by suggesting them about the relevant events happening in the city. The website can be customised by the users and organisers for a better experience. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/screen%20shot%202016-09-05%20at%206.14.00%20pm-20160906061805.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
 
 
Dam.com.bd 
 
Dam.com.bd is the first online shopping database of Bangladesh. It gathers and compares the price information of every single product in the market, helping the consumers to grab the best deal. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/dam.com.bd%20(1)-20160906062151.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
 
 
Zuumzuum 
 
Zuumzuum is an e-commerce platform for lifestyle shoppers who are looking for products from reputed brands at competitive prices throughout South Asian markets. It was founded by ex-Groupon member Rafi Mustafa. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/zuumzuum-20160906062023.png" />
<div class="media-description">
&nbsp;
</div>
(WION Edge with inputs from&nbsp;Karanveer Singh Arora, Ashna Mishra)&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

?With an enthusiastic and tech-savvy Gen-Y, Bangladesh is emerging as one of the hottest startup hubs in Asia

Bangladesh's startup ecosystem is maturing at a fast pace, providing the young entrepreneurs a platform where they can innovate and disrupt. With an enthusiastic and tech-savvy Gen-Y, Bangladesh is emerging as one of the hottest startup hubs in Asia. Here's a round-up of 10 startups that are redefining the ecosystem in the South Asian country. Technolive Technolive is a news aggregator app which compiles news in real time from various websites and social media. This app uses machine learning algorithms for monitoring the news. The Tech Lab The Tech Lab aims to reinvent Bangladesh’s education system. It is an engineering institute catered towards Bangladeshi children. The Tech Lab provides courses on programming, electronics, robotics, and mechanical engineering among other courses. Unigigg Unigigg provides a platform that connects students with their potential employers with an aim to popularise unconventional jobs like photography in the Bangladeshi society. This startup is currently in its alpha testing phase and is getting a very positive response. Branoo Branoo is an e-commerce startup catering to men, women and kids alike with a wide variety of products from various brands. It has its own warehouse to store products. Branoo offers several payment modes to the customers. Track My Vehicle Track My Vehicle is a startup which aims to address one of the biggest problems of Bangladesh: vehicle stealing. Using the mobile app and website, the customers can get the reports on their vehicles’ speed, location, and other important statistics. Bongo Bangladesh’s video-on-demand startup, Bongo, is popularly called the country’s very own version of Netflix. It is an entertainment catalog with a library of over 30,000 movies, TV shows and music videos. Bongo plans to extend its services to other countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal and the U.S. Buckets Engineer Buckets Engineer is a subscription-based service for the autistic kids in Bangladesh. The startup has created a hub of applications and tools so as to allow the parents, therapists and educators to undertake a dynamic approach and make the autistic children learn better. Kokhon.com Kokhon is a website that is dedicated solely to aggregating events happening all over Bangladesh’s capital ‘Dhaka’. The startup helps people by suggesting them about the relevant events happening in the city. The website can be customised by the users and organisers for a better experience. Dam.com.bd Dam.com.bd is the first online shopping database of Bangladesh. It gathers and compares the price information of every single product in the market, helping the consumers to grab the best deal. Zuumzuum Zuumzuum is an e-commerce platform for lifestyle shoppers who are looking for products from reputed brands at competitive prices throughout South Asian markets. It was founded by ex-Groupon member Rafi Mustafa. (WION Edge with inputs from Karanveer Singh Arora, Ashna Mishra)

10 most promising startups from Bangladesh

A court in Bangladesh on Thursday allowed police to detain two men over the attack claimed by militant group Islamic State on a cafe in the capital, Dhaka, that killed 20 hostages, mostly foreigners. 
 
The case has drawn criticism from human rights groups who say the suspects were illegally detained and denied access to a lawyer. A lawyer for one of the two men, Hasnat Karim, said his client was innocent and demanded his immediate release.&nbsp; 
 
Karim, who holds dual British and Bangladeshi citizenship, and Tahmid Hasib Khan, a student of Toronto University, were dining separately with family and friends when gunmen stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery on the evening of July 1. 
 
The suspected Islamist militants singled out non-Muslims and foreigners, killing Italians, Japanese, an American and an Indian before security forces stormed the eatery to end the 12-hour siege. Two police also died in the operation. 
 
On Thursday, a Dhaka court remanded the men in custody for eight days for interrogation, with police official Masudur Rahman telling reporters they had been arrested on Wednesday night &quot;from two different places&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
Unknown location 
 
The police assertion of arrests at different sites appeared to run counter to relatives&#39; statements that the men were held at unknown locations after the attack. 
 
&quot;The authorities have finally admitted that Mr Karim is in their custody,&quot; his London-based lawyer, Rodney Dixon, told Reuters in a statement. 
 
&quot;They have had more than sufficient time to make any inquiries. There is clearly no evidence to charge him and he should be let go without any further delay.&quot; 
 
Rights group Amnesty International has criticised the detention of the men as having denied them their fundamental right to legal representation. 
 
The formal arrests take to seven the tally for the cafe attack, which the government blames on local militants, along with another, on July 26, in which police killed nine militants believed to be plotting a similar assault. 
 
The government has dismissed suggestions that Islamic State has a presence in Bangladesh, even though &#39;selfies&#39; of some of the attackers posing with an automatic rifle were posted on the jihadi group&#39;s propaganda outlets during the siege. 
 
In the past year, al Qaeda and Islamic State have made competing claims over the killings of liberals and religious minorities in the mostly Muslim nation of 160 million. 
 
Karim and Khan were among 32 survivors rescued by police and taken into custody for questioning. Police released the others soon after, but the two men&#39;s families said they had not returned. 
 
Karim, a 47-year-old engineer, was at the cafe with his family to celebrate his daughter&#39;s 13th birthday. 
 
Relatives of Khan, 22, told the New York Times that the student, who has epilepsy, had been beaten and denied medical attention after being held. 
 
Khan&#39;s father, reached by telephone, declined to comment. 
 
(Reuters)

Amnesty International has criticised the detention of the men as having denied them their fundamental right to legal representation

A court in Bangladesh on Thursday allowed police to detain two men over the attack claimed by militant group Islamic State on a cafe in the capital, Dhaka, that killed 20 hostages, mostly foreigners. The case has drawn criticism from human rights groups who say the suspects were illegally detained and denied access to a lawyer. A lawyer for one of the two men, Hasnat Karim, said his client was innocent and demanded his immediate release. Karim, who holds dual British and Bangladeshi citizenship, and Tahmid Hasib Khan, a student of Toronto University, were dining separately with family and friends when gunmen stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery on the evening of July 1. The suspected Islamist militants singled out non-Muslims and foreigners, killing Italians, Japanese, an American and an Indian before security forces stormed the eatery to end the 12-hour siege. Two police also died in the operation. On Thursday, a Dhaka court remanded the men in custody for eight days for interrogation, with police official Masudur Rahman telling reporters they had been arrested on Wednesday night "from two different places". Unknown location The police assertion of arrests at different sites appeared to run counter to relatives' statements that the men were held at unknown locations after the attack. "The authorities have finally admitted that Mr Karim is in their custody," his London-based lawyer, Rodney Dixon, told Reuters in a statement. "They have had more than sufficient time to make any inquiries. There is clearly no evidence to charge him and he should be let go without any further delay." Rights group Amnesty International has criticised the detention of the men as having denied them their fundamental right to legal representation. The formal arrests take to seven the tally for the cafe attack, which the government blames on local militants, along with another, on July 26, in which police killed nine militants believed to be plotting a similar assault. The government has dismissed suggestions that Islamic State has a presence in Bangladesh, even though 'selfies' of some of the attackers posing with an automatic rifle were posted on the jihadi group's propaganda outlets during the siege. In the past year, al Qaeda and Islamic State have made competing claims over the killings of liberals and religious minorities in the mostly Muslim nation of 160 million. Karim and Khan were among 32 survivors rescued by police and taken into custody for questioning. Police released the others soon after, but the two men's families said they had not returned. Karim, a 47-year-old engineer, was at the cafe with his family to celebrate his daughter's 13th birthday. Relatives of Khan, 22, told the New York Times that the student, who has epilepsy, had been beaten and denied medical attention after being held. Khan's father, reached by telephone, declined to comment. (Reuters)

Bangladesh detains two over July cafe attack that killed 20 hostages

The Bangladesh education ministry has asked the home ministry to shut down the country&#39;s &ldquo;peace schools&rdquo; without further delay. 
 
&ldquo;We have taken the decision as the educational institutions have no approval from the government,&rdquo; education minister Nurul Islam Nahid told The Daily Star on Tuesday evening. &ldquo;No institute can run without following rules and regulations.&rdquo; 
 
The shut down of the schools was ordered following intelligence and media reports that the schools&#39; curriculum promoted religious extremism.&nbsp; 
 
&ldquo;As we did not approve them (peace schools), we have nothing to do with them. These unapproved schools must be closed with the force of law enforcers. That&#39;s why we have made the call to the home ministry,&rdquo; a senior education ministry official told the Daily Star. 
 
The schools have been up and running due to a lack of government oversight, he added. 
 
The directive -- to shut down the schools -- was passed after detailed discussion of an intelligence report about the operations of the peace schools, the Daily Star&nbsp;quoted sources who had been part of that meeting as saying. 
 
According to the report, as many as 27 schools in six districts were regulated by Jamaat-e-Islami and a part of their earnings was spent on the party&#39;s organisational activities. 
 
(WION web team)

Officials said the schools had been up and running due to a lack of government oversight

The Bangladesh education ministry has asked the home ministry to shut down the country's “peace schools” without further delay. “We have taken the decision as the educational institutions have no approval from the government,” education minister Nurul Islam Nahid told The Daily Star on Tuesday evening. “No institute can run without following rules and regulations.” The shut down of the schools was ordered following intelligence and media reports that the schools' curriculum promoted religious extremism. “As we did not approve them (peace schools), we have nothing to do with them. These unapproved schools must be closed with the force of law enforcers. That's why we have made the call to the home ministry,” a senior education ministry official told the Daily Star. The schools have been up and running due to a lack of government oversight, he added. The directive -- to shut down the schools -- was passed after detailed discussion of an intelligence report about the operations of the peace schools, the Daily Star quoted sources who had been part of that meeting as saying. According to the report, as many as 27 schools in six districts were regulated by Jamaat-e-Islami and a part of their earnings was spent on the party's organisational activities. (WION web team)

Bangladesh orders closure of 'peace schools' which reportedly promoted religious extremism

The bodies of five Islamists behind the deadly attack on a Bangladesh cafe have still not been claimed, even a month later, police said Monday, as tens of thousands took to the streets to protest against extremism. 
 
Relatives have spoken of their shock and horror at learning of their kin&#39;s involvement in the siege in Dhaka&#39;s Holey Artisan cafe in the upmarket Gulshan neighbourhood, in which 20 hostages were killed, many of them hacked to death. 
 
&quot;No relatives came to us or officially applied for the bodies of the 14 extremists,&quot; Dhaka Metropolitan Police spokesman Masudur Rahman said. 
 
Sohel Mahmud, a forensic doctor at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital, said several families had come to identify the bodies. 
&quot;But no one wanted to take them home for burial,&quot; he said. 
 
Police gave no official reason, but officers speaking on condition of anonymity said the parents of the extremists were overwhelmed with guilt.&nbsp;Six of the young men were from well-off Dhaka families, among them 18-year-old Rohan Imtiaz. His father Imtiaz Khan Babul told AFP he was &quot;stunned and speechless&quot; to hear of his only son&#39;s involvement in the carnage, and apologised to the nation. 
 
Abdus Salam said his brother Mohammad Abdullah, one of the nine killed in the shootout with police, had betrayed the family and his country. 
 
&quot;That&#39;s why we don&#39;t want to take his body,&quot; he told reporters last week. 
 
On Monday tens of thousands of university and college students across the country stood in silence and formed human chains in front of their schools. 
 
&quot;No terrorism, we want peace. We want life without fear,&quot; read one banner at a women&#39;s college in Dhaka. 
 
Authorities have launched a nationwide campaign to shame those behind the attacks.&nbsp;Clerics at the mainly Muslim country&#39;s more than 300,000 mosques have been asked to give sermons on why Islam forbids killing. 
 
Police said the bodies of nine other men allegedly from the same group who were shot when police launched a raid on a militant hideout on July 26 are also still being stored at a state hospital. 
 
(AFP)

Police claim parents of the extremists are overwhelmed with guilt

The bodies of five Islamists behind the deadly attack on a Bangladesh cafe have still not been claimed, even a month later, police said Monday, as tens of thousands took to the streets to protest against extremism. Relatives have spoken of their shock and horror at learning of their kin's involvement in the siege in Dhaka's Holey Artisan cafe in the upmarket Gulshan neighbourhood, in which 20 hostages were killed, many of them hacked to death. "No relatives came to us or officially applied for the bodies of the 14 extremists," Dhaka Metropolitan Police spokesman Masudur Rahman said. Sohel Mahmud, a forensic doctor at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital, said several families had come to identify the bodies. "But no one wanted to take them home for burial," he said. Police gave no official reason, but officers speaking on condition of anonymity said the parents of the extremists were overwhelmed with guilt. Six of the young men were from well-off Dhaka families, among them 18-year-old Rohan Imtiaz. His father Imtiaz Khan Babul told AFP he was "stunned and speechless" to hear of his only son's involvement in the carnage, and apologised to the nation. Abdus Salam said his brother Mohammad Abdullah, one of the nine killed in the shootout with police, had betrayed the family and his country. "That's why we don't want to take his body," he told reporters last week. On Monday tens of thousands of university and college students across the country stood in silence and formed human chains in front of their schools. "No terrorism, we want peace. We want life without fear," read one banner at a women's college in Dhaka. Authorities have launched a nationwide campaign to shame those behind the attacks. Clerics at the mainly Muslim country's more than 300,000 mosques have been asked to give sermons on why Islam forbids killing. Police said the bodies of nine other men allegedly from the same group who were shot when police launched a raid on a militant hideout on July 26 are also still being stored at a state hospital. (AFP)

A month on, bodies of 5 Dhaka cafe attackers remain unclaimed

Indian railway minister Suresh Prabhu on Sunday laid the foundation stone of a new rail link connecting Bangladesh to the northeastern state of Tripura. 
 
Prabhu along with his Bangladeshi counterpart, Mujibul Haque, laid the foundation stone of the 15 kilometre long India-Bangladesh rail link in Tripura&#39;s capital Agartala.&nbsp;After laying the stone, the railway minister said they were also finding out a way to connect India to Chittagong, Bangladesh&#39;s financial centre. 
 
&quot;We will have a more detailed discussion to bring in these two friends even closer to one another to benefit from each other&#39;s connectivity. So this is part of a Trans-Asian railway network and I am sure in the next few years time we will be able to connect more. In fact, we just discussed, we are also finding out how we can have a small little connectivity that is missing to bring this part of India, connecting directly to Chittagong,&quot; said Prabhu. 
 
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had discussed the railway project with his Bangladeshi counterpart, Sheikh Hasina, during his visit to Dhaka in June 2015. 
 
The Indian government would bear the entire expenditure of the railways project.&nbsp;Reportedly, on the Indian side, some portion of the track would be elevated to avoid farm land and habitations.&nbsp;Currently, India and Bangladesh have four rail links with West Bengal. 
 
(Reuters)

The 15 kilometre-long rail link will connect India's northeastern state of Tripura to Bangladesh

Indian railway minister Suresh Prabhu on Sunday laid the foundation stone of a new rail link connecting Bangladesh to the northeastern state of Tripura. Prabhu along with his Bangladeshi counterpart, Mujibul Haque, laid the foundation stone of the 15 kilometre long India-Bangladesh rail link in Tripura's capital Agartala. After laying the stone, the railway minister said they were also finding out a way to connect India to Chittagong, Bangladesh's financial centre. "We will have a more detailed discussion to bring in these two friends even closer to one another to benefit from each other's connectivity. So this is part of a Trans-Asian railway network and I am sure in the next few years time we will be able to connect more. In fact, we just discussed, we are also finding out how we can have a small little connectivity that is missing to bring this part of India, connecting directly to Chittagong," said Prabhu. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had discussed the railway project with his Bangladeshi counterpart, Sheikh Hasina, during his visit to Dhaka in June 2015. The Indian government would bear the entire expenditure of the railways project. Reportedly, on the Indian side, some portion of the track would be elevated to avoid farm land and habitations. Currently, India and Bangladesh have four rail links with West Bengal. (Reuters)

Indian railway minister lays foundation stone of rail link with Bangladesh

India&#39;s home minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday (July 28) met his Bangladeshi counterpart Asaduzzaman Khan in New Delhi and signed an amendment to the Bilateral Extradition Treaty. 
 
The amendment to Article 10(3) of the treaty will enable both countries to deport an accused if a trial court has issued a warrant against the person. The treaty earlier allowed deportation only after verifying evidence against the accused. 
 
The two ministers also decided to increase cooperation in issues including militancy and narcotics, among others. 
 
&quot;The amendments on our discussions have been signed. We discussed issues of militancy. We held talks to fight against all sorts of militancy. We also discussed border issues. We were assured that India will always be with Bangladesh. We also discussed issues on narcotics,&quot; said Khan. 
 
Earlier in the day, Khan called on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the capital. 
 
The Bangladesh delegation led by Khan arrived in the national capital on Wednesday (July 27). 
 
Bangladesh and India share a 4,096-kilometer (2,545-mile)-long international border with five Indian states - Assam, Tripura, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and West Bengal. 
 
The migration of tens of thousands of people from Bangladesh into India has long been a sensitive issue in India. 
 
(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

The amendment to the treaty will enable both countries to deport an accused if a trial court has issued a warrant against the person

India's home minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday (July 28) met his Bangladeshi counterpart Asaduzzaman Khan in New Delhi and signed an amendment to the Bilateral Extradition Treaty. The amendment to Article 10(3) of the treaty will enable both countries to deport an accused if a trial court has issued a warrant against the person. The treaty earlier allowed deportation only after verifying evidence against the accused. The two ministers also decided to increase cooperation in issues including militancy and narcotics, among others. "The amendments on our discussions have been signed. We discussed issues of militancy. We held talks to fight against all sorts of militancy. We also discussed border issues. We were assured that India will always be with Bangladesh. We also discussed issues on narcotics," said Khan. Earlier in the day, Khan called on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the capital. The Bangladesh delegation led by Khan arrived in the national capital on Wednesday (July 27). Bangladesh and India share a 4,096-kilometer (2,545-mile)-long international border with five Indian states - Assam, Tripura, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and West Bengal. The migration of tens of thousands of people from Bangladesh into India has long been a sensitive issue in India. (Reuters)

India, Bangladesh sign amendment to extradition treaty

A Bangladesh court today upheld the death sentence for six Islamist terrorists convicted over a suicide bombing in 2005 of a lawyer&#39;s office that killed eight people, a top prosecutor said. 
 
Bangladesh&#39;s judiciary is under pressure to fast track cases involving terorrists as the government faces mounting criticism to crackdown on Islamists over a series of recent deadly killings. A bench of two high court judges rejected appeals from the six convicted over the 2005 bombing, claimed by local extremist group Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB). 
 
&quot;The court upheld the death orders against the six JMB extremists, as the charges against them were proved beyond any doubt,&quot; deputy attorney general Sheikh AKM Moniruzzaman told AFP. JMB has also been blamed for a siege this month by five gunmen on an upscale cafe in Dhaka that killed 20, mostly foreign hostages and two police officers. 
 
Police have rejected the Islamic State (IS) group&#39;s claim for the July 1 attack. The group posted gruesome images of the carnage before the military stormed the cafe.&nbsp; 
 
Moniruzzaman said the six convicted terrorists had conspired and assisted in the bombing of the lawyer&#39;s office, just north of Dhaka, part of JMB&#39;s then deadly campaign against the secular judiciary. 
 
&quot;Of the ten JMB extremists originally sentenced to death by the trial court in 2013, two were acquitted by the high court and two others were sentenced to life in prison,&quot; he added. The attack was one of a series of blasts the JMB carried out in 2005, then raising fears that the Muslim-majority nation would descend into Afghanistan-style Islamic militancy. 
 
Four lawyers and four litigants died in the attack. The suicide bomber was also killed. Authorities launched a crackdown on the JMB at the time, but it has regrouped in recent years under new leaders. According to experts, it has been actively recruiting young and highly educated young men to its ranks. 
 
Police have blamed the banned group for scores of gruesome murders of religious minorities, as well as of foreigners, since 2013. 
 
(AFP)

The six were convicted over the 2005 bombing, claimed by local extremist group Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh

A Bangladesh court today upheld the death sentence for six Islamist terrorists convicted over a suicide bombing in 2005 of a lawyer's office that killed eight people, a top prosecutor said. Bangladesh's judiciary is under pressure to fast track cases involving terorrists as the government faces mounting criticism to crackdown on Islamists over a series of recent deadly killings. A bench of two high court judges rejected appeals from the six convicted over the 2005 bombing, claimed by local extremist group Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB). "The court upheld the death orders against the six JMB extremists, as the charges against them were proved beyond any doubt," deputy attorney general Sheikh AKM Moniruzzaman told AFP. JMB has also been blamed for a siege this month by five gunmen on an upscale cafe in Dhaka that killed 20, mostly foreign hostages and two police officers. Police have rejected the Islamic State (IS) group's claim for the July 1 attack. The group posted gruesome images of the carnage before the military stormed the cafe. Moniruzzaman said the six convicted terrorists had conspired and assisted in the bombing of the lawyer's office, just north of Dhaka, part of JMB's then deadly campaign against the secular judiciary. "Of the ten JMB extremists originally sentenced to death by the trial court in 2013, two were acquitted by the high court and two others were sentenced to life in prison," he added. The attack was one of a series of blasts the JMB carried out in 2005, then raising fears that the Muslim-majority nation would descend into Afghanistan-style Islamic militancy. Four lawyers and four litigants died in the attack. The suicide bomber was also killed. Authorities launched a crackdown on the JMB at the time, but it has regrouped in recent years under new leaders. According to experts, it has been actively recruiting young and highly educated young men to its ranks. Police have blamed the banned group for scores of gruesome murders of religious minorities, as well as of foreigners, since 2013. (AFP)

Bangladesh upholds death sentence for six terrorists

Top officials of border forces of India and Bangladesh met on Tuesday to discuss security-related issues, including cross-border infiltration and smuggling. 
 
India&#39;s Border Security Force (BSF) was led by inspector general Kamal Nayan Choubey, while Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) was represented by additional deputy general, region commander, Shahriar Ahmed Choudhury, at the talks held at Fulbari check post in India&#39;s eastern state of West Bengal. 
 
The two sides also discussed security measures in the wake of recent brutal attack in Dhaka, Bangladesh early this month when 20 people were killed after five Bangladeshi men stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery, a cafe popular with foreigners, businessmen and diplomats. 
 
It was agreed to enhance border security and exchange real time actionable intelligence. 
 
&quot;The broad issues that we have discussed today are something that all of you are aware of, the issue of trans-border crime, the issue of infiltration, the issue that concerns India&#39;s security. We have also discussed the recent developments in the subcontinent specifically certain incidents that had taken place in Bangladesh,&quot; said Choubey. 
 
Choudhury said there was unanimity to secure the borders to prevent cross-border infiltration. 
 
&quot;Today basically we have discussed the kind of difficulties that we are facing in the border in general so that our bordering areas remain secure and nobody can cross either side of the border,&quot; said Choudhury. 
 
Bangladesh and India share a 4,096-kilometre (2,545-mile)-long international border with five Indian states -- Assam, Tripura, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and West Bengal. 
 
The two countries are also looking to boost security along the border to prevent human trafficking. 
 
The migration of tens of thousands of people from Bangladesh into India has long been a sensitive issue in India. 
 
(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

India's Border Security Force and Border Guard Bangladesh agree to enhance border security and exchange real time actionable intelligence

Top officials of border forces of India and Bangladesh met on Tuesday to discuss security-related issues, including cross-border infiltration and smuggling. India's Border Security Force (BSF) was led by inspector general Kamal Nayan Choubey, while Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) was represented by additional deputy general, region commander, Shahriar Ahmed Choudhury, at the talks held at Fulbari check post in India's eastern state of West Bengal. The two sides also discussed security measures in the wake of recent brutal attack in Dhaka, Bangladesh early this month when 20 people were killed after five Bangladeshi men stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery, a cafe popular with foreigners, businessmen and diplomats. It was agreed to enhance border security and exchange real time actionable intelligence. "The broad issues that we have discussed today are something that all of you are aware of, the issue of trans-border crime, the issue of infiltration, the issue that concerns India's security. We have also discussed the recent developments in the subcontinent specifically certain incidents that had taken place in Bangladesh," said Choubey. Choudhury said there was unanimity to secure the borders to prevent cross-border infiltration. "Today basically we have discussed the kind of difficulties that we are facing in the border in general so that our bordering areas remain secure and nobody can cross either side of the border," said Choudhury. Bangladesh and India share a 4,096-kilometre (2,545-mile)-long international border with five Indian states -- Assam, Tripura, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and West Bengal. The two countries are also looking to boost security along the border to prevent human trafficking. The migration of tens of thousands of people from Bangladesh into India has long been a sensitive issue in India. (Reuters)

India, Bangladesh agree to strengthen border security

The nine militants that were killed in a special drive by joint forces in Dhaka were all very young and &#39;highly educated&#39; and they shouted &quot;Allahu Akbar&quot; before attacking the law enforcers during the standoff, officials said.&nbsp; 
 
The militants were aged about 20, wore jeans and sneakers and were highly educated, said Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia and added that &quot;Allahu Akbar&quot; inscribed black flags were recovered from the den. Thirteen handmade grenades, one sword, one pistol, seven magazines and were also recovered. 
 
SWAT, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Detective Branch of police (DB) and Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) jointly carried out a one-hour operation &quot;Storm 26,&quot; at Jahaj Building in Dhaka&#39;s Kalyanpur area today. The militants had rented the apartment on June 20 and had gathered there to carry out terror attacks, said officials. 
 
The occupants of the building and adjacent ones were evacuated overnight to carry out the raid. A militant identified as Hassan, who was held alive during the drive, has reportedly confessed to be an operative of the Islamic State and was a student of Bogra&#39;s Government Shah Sultan College. However, the police suspects they are members of the banned militant outfit Jama&#39;atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) who were trying to wield the emblem of the Islamic State. 
 
The DMP Commissioner added that police suspect these attackers belong to the same group that attacked the Gulshan cafe because similar kind of red handkerchiefs, black dresses and backpacks were found.&nbsp; 
 
(ANI)

It is suspected millitants were members of banned militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh, who were trying to wield the IS emblem

The nine militants that were killed in a special drive by joint forces in Dhaka were all very young and 'highly educated' and they shouted "Allahu Akbar" before attacking the law enforcers during the standoff, officials said. The militants were aged about 20, wore jeans and sneakers and were highly educated, said Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia and added that "Allahu Akbar" inscribed black flags were recovered from the den. Thirteen handmade grenades, one sword, one pistol, seven magazines and were also recovered. SWAT, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Detective Branch of police (DB) and Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) jointly carried out a one-hour operation "Storm 26," at Jahaj Building in Dhaka's Kalyanpur area today. The militants had rented the apartment on June 20 and had gathered there to carry out terror attacks, said officials. The occupants of the building and adjacent ones were evacuated overnight to carry out the raid. A militant identified as Hassan, who was held alive during the drive, has reportedly confessed to be an operative of the Islamic State and was a student of Bogra's Government Shah Sultan College. However, the police suspects they are members of the banned militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) who were trying to wield the emblem of the Islamic State. The DMP Commissioner added that police suspect these attackers belong to the same group that attacked the Gulshan cafe because similar kind of red handkerchiefs, black dresses and backpacks were found. (ANI)

Bangladesh raid: 'Slain militants were young and highly educated'

Police in Bangladesh arrested today four women members of a home-grown militant group blamed for a bloody attack on a cafe in which 22 were killed, most of them foreigners, an officer said.&nbsp; 
 
Meanwhile, Bangladesh newspaper, The Daily Star, quoted the Dhaka police chief Asaduzzaman Mia as stating that the &quot;instigators of the Gulshan caf? attack have been identified and their arrest is now simply a matter of time&quot;. The police chief reportedly said this to reporters in his office this afternoon. 
 
Authorities have intensified a hunt for militants after five young men stormed the upmarket restaurant, Holey Artisan Bakery, popular with foreigners on July 1. Among those killed were nine Italians, seven Japanese, an American and an Indian. 
 
The five militants were gunned down when security forces moved in. 
 
Police believe that Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), a banned group that has pledged allegiance to Islamic State, played a significant role in organising the group of privileged, educated young men who carried out the attack. 
 
The four women members of the group, aged 18 to 30, who were arrested in from the northwestern district of Sirajganj in Bangladesh, were believed to have been plotting an attack, police said. 
 
&quot;Acting on a tip-off, our force raided a rented house where a large amount of grenade-making materials, crude bombs and jihadi books were also found,&quot; district police superintendent Siraj Uddin Ahmed told reporters. 
 
The women would be interrogated to determine if they had any link to the Dhaka cafe attack, he said. 
 
On Thursday, four other members of the banned group, including a regional head, were arrested. 
 
The cafe attack was one of the worst militant attacks ever in Bangladesh. 
 
Al Qaeda and Islamic State have made competing claims for a series of killings of liberals and members of religious minorities in the country over the past year. 
 
The government dismissed the claims and instead blamed domestic militant groups, but security experts say the scale and sophistication of the cafe assault suggested links to a trans-national network. 
 
(WION and Reuters)

Aged between 18-30, they were plotting an attack and were members of Jamayetul Mujahideen that has pledged allegiance to IS, police said

Police in Bangladesh arrested today four women members of a home-grown militant group blamed for a bloody attack on a cafe in which 22 were killed, most of them foreigners, an officer said. Meanwhile, Bangladesh newspaper, The Daily Star, quoted the Dhaka police chief Asaduzzaman Mia as stating that the "instigators of the Gulshan caf? attack have been identified and their arrest is now simply a matter of time". The police chief reportedly said this to reporters in his office this afternoon. Authorities have intensified a hunt for militants after five young men stormed the upmarket restaurant, Holey Artisan Bakery, popular with foreigners on July 1. Among those killed were nine Italians, seven Japanese, an American and an Indian. The five militants were gunned down when security forces moved in. Police believe that Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), a banned group that has pledged allegiance to Islamic State, played a significant role in organising the group of privileged, educated young men who carried out the attack. The four women members of the group, aged 18 to 30, who were arrested in from the northwestern district of Sirajganj in Bangladesh, were believed to have been plotting an attack, police said. "Acting on a tip-off, our force raided a rented house where a large amount of grenade-making materials, crude bombs and jihadi books were also found," district police superintendent Siraj Uddin Ahmed told reporters. The women would be interrogated to determine if they had any link to the Dhaka cafe attack, he said. On Thursday, four other members of the banned group, including a regional head, were arrested. The cafe attack was one of the worst militant attacks ever in Bangladesh. Al Qaeda and Islamic State have made competing claims for a series of killings of liberals and members of religious minorities in the country over the past year. The government dismissed the claims and instead blamed domestic militant groups, but security experts say the scale and sophistication of the cafe assault suggested links to a trans-national network. (WION and Reuters)

Bangladesh arrests four women militants, to quiz them in Dhaka cafe attack

Indian Prime Minister Narendra&nbsp;Modi&nbsp;on Thursday jointly inaugurated a border check post with his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh&nbsp;Hasina&nbsp;through video conferencing and iterated the country&#39;s support to its neighbour in its anti-terror fight.

The Petrapole Integrated Check Post (ICP) in India&#39;s eastern West Bengal state is the second ICP on the India-Bangladesh border after one at the Agartala - Akhaura border. It is also the biggest land port in South Asia.

Inaugurating the ICP,&nbsp;Modi&nbsp;pitched for concerted efforts to curb militancy.

&quot;You (Bangladesh) shouldn&#39;t consider yourself alone in the fight against militancy. India completely supports you. I also want to assure Prime Minister Sheikh&nbsp;Hasina&nbsp;that India is always ready for all possible support in the fight against militancy,&quot;&nbsp;Modi&nbsp;said. 
 
Bangladeshi newpaper The Daily Star quoted Modi as saying&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;It&#39;s a matter of pain for me as well as for the people of my country that there were two terror incidents in Dhaka and Kishoreganj during the holy month of Ramadan. It&#39;s a sad moment when temples and their priests as also civilians were subjected to inhumane torture.&quot; 
 
Bangladesh&#39;s security forces arrested four members of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen (JMB) on Thursday, including a regional leader of the banned group blamed for the Islamist attack on a cafe in Dhaka in which at least 20 people were killed.

The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) raided an apartment on the outskirts of the capital Dhaka and arrested the group&#39;s southern region leader and three other members, including a medical student.

Modi&nbsp;also assured more check posts to check cross-border terrorism.

&quot;We will soon complete eight such integrated check posts on the border. Excellency, I firmly believe that economic development and connectivity are closely linked,&quot; he said.

Hasina&nbsp;added that the ICP would boost trade and people-to-people contacts.

&quot;As business between the two countries grows, the economic well-being of the people will also improve substantially. So after congratulating everybody, I wish business and trade will get a fillip through Petrapole Integrated Check Post,&quot; she said. 
 
According to the Daily Star, West Bengal chief minister Mamta Banerjee-&nbsp;who was also a part of the videoconference-&nbsp;said that West Bengal is the gateway to Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan.&nbsp;

Petrapole-Benapole is an important land border crossing as more than 50 per cent of India-Bangladesh trade passes through Petrapole.

The Petrapole ICP will provide better facilities for effective and efficient discharge of functions such as security, immigration, customs, quarantine, etc. while also providing support facilities for smooth cross-border movement of persons, goods and transport.

It will also serve to foster greater economic integration and connectivity between India and Bangladesh. 
 
(Others)

The two ministers spoke to each other while jointly inaugurating a border check post over videoconferencing on Thursday

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday jointly inaugurated a border check post with his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina through video conferencing and iterated the country's support to its neighbour in its anti-terror fight. The Petrapole Integrated Check Post (ICP) in India's eastern West Bengal state is the second ICP on the India-Bangladesh border after one at the Agartala - Akhaura border. It is also the biggest land port in South Asia. Inaugurating the ICP, Modi pitched for concerted efforts to curb militancy. "You (Bangladesh) shouldn't consider yourself alone in the fight against militancy. India completely supports you. I also want to assure Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina that India is always ready for all possible support in the fight against militancy," Modi said. Bangladeshi newpaper The Daily Star quoted Modi as saying “It's a matter of pain for me as well as for the people of my country that there were two terror incidents in Dhaka and Kishoreganj during the holy month of Ramadan. It's a sad moment when temples and their priests as also civilians were subjected to inhumane torture." Bangladesh's security forces arrested four members of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen (JMB) on Thursday, including a regional leader of the banned group blamed for the Islamist attack on a cafe in Dhaka in which at least 20 people were killed. The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) raided an apartment on the outskirts of the capital Dhaka and arrested the group's southern region leader and three other members, including a medical student. Modi also assured more check posts to check cross-border terrorism. "We will soon complete eight such integrated check posts on the border. Excellency, I firmly believe that economic development and connectivity are closely linked," he said. Hasina added that the ICP would boost trade and people-to-people contacts. "As business between the two countries grows, the economic well-being of the people will also improve substantially. So after congratulating everybody, I wish business and trade will get a fillip through Petrapole Integrated Check Post," she said. According to the Daily Star, West Bengal chief minister Mamta Banerjee- who was also a part of the videoconference- said that West Bengal is the gateway to Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan. Petrapole-Benapole is an important land border crossing as more than 50 per cent of India-Bangladesh trade passes through Petrapole. The Petrapole ICP will provide better facilities for effective and efficient discharge of functions such as security, immigration, customs, quarantine, etc. while also providing support facilities for smooth cross-border movement of persons, goods and transport. It will also serve to foster greater economic integration and connectivity between India and Bangladesh. (Others)

Do not consider yourself alone in fight against militancy: Modi to Hasina

Emdadul Islam&#39;s three-decade-long career in Bangladesh&#39;s garment trade has seen the industry hit by riots, labour unrest, power shortages and safety scandals, but he had never lost faith in its ability to weather the latest crisis and continue to grow. 
 
Now, after a group of radicalised young Bangladeshis killed about 20 people, including 18 foreigners, in an attack on an upscale Dhaka restaurant claimed by Islamic State, he fears for the future of the $28 billion sector. 
 
&quot;I thought it impossible for this to happen in Bangladesh,&quot; said Islam, a director of Babylon Group, which makes garments for international brands like H&amp;M and Tesco. &quot;It was just a nightmare. This is not Afghanistan, or Pakistan, or something.&quot; 
 
Bangladesh relies on garments for more than 80 per cent of its exports and roughly 4 million jobs. It ranks behind only China as a clothing supplier to developed markets in Europe and the United States. 
 
But the July 1 attack has confronted the industry with its biggest image crisis since the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory building in 2013, with some fearing security worries could cripple a sector that is the lifeblood of the economy. 
 
&quot;I never thought Islamic extremism would be a big threat to the industry directly, and I never thought it would happen quite like this,&quot; said Rubana Huq, managing director at the Mohammadi Group, which owns a string of garment factories and other businesses. 
 
Foreign companies, including Japan&#39;s Uniqlo, have suspended all but critical travel to the country since the attack, although there are no signs yet of big players moving orders elsewhere. The government says it has stepped up security for foreign business travellers, investors and diplomats. 
 
Black Friday 
 
Despite a long history of turbulent domestic politics that often spills onto the streets, Islam said the relative stability of Bangladesh compared with rival manufacturing bases had been an important factor in the rise of its garment sector. 
 
&quot;When we started in the 1980s, Sri Lanka at that time was in a very volatile situation, so companies came to us. They wanted Bangladesh to produce - that&#39;s how we grew,&quot; said Islam, 60, one of the founding partners of garment maker Babylon Group back in 1986. 
 
Islamic State and al-Qaeda have made competing claims for a series of killings of liberals and members of Bangladesh&#39;s religious minorities in the past year.&nbsp;But the July 1 attack signalled a far more sophisticated threat from those seeking to replace the mainly Muslim country&#39;s secular democracy with strict Islamic rule. 
 
&quot;On that night, we lost the identity of our country,&quot; said Mesbha Uddin Ali, chairman of garment maker Wega Group. 
 
What has been particularly shocking to many middle-class Bangladeshis is that the attackers mostly came from well-to-do backgrounds, and appear to have been radicalised only recently. 
 
&quot;One of my friends called it &#39;Black Friday&#39;, which I think was pretty accurate,&quot; said an American in the garment industry, who has been living in Bangladesh for seven years. 
 
&quot;Bangladesh has such a strong family culture, and yet the fact that these young, educated boys chose to leave that and do something like this is shocking.&quot; 
 
Many of the victims of the latest attack worked in the garment trade, and the US executive, who declined to be identified due to personal safety concerns, said it had prompted him to take extra precautions. 
 
&quot;I don&#39;t walk anymore,&quot; he said. &quot;I don&#39;t take the rickshaws anymore. And I&#39;m not a man who likes to waste time, or money, so I did take a rickshaw for short distances. Now I just lay low.&quot; 
 
Some local executives have taken more drastic measures.&nbsp;&quot;Earlier I had this pistol, but it was never loaded and I did not carry it,&quot; said Mohsin Uddin Ahmed Niru, a director of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA). &quot;Now I carry it every day.&quot; 
 
Warning signs 
 
There had been warning signs that the radicalisation threat in Bangladesh was growing.&nbsp;An Italian aid worker was shot dead in Dhaka&#39;s diplomatic quarter in September 2015, in the same week masked gunmen killed a Japanese farmer in northern Bangladesh. 
 
In response, the government deployed paramilitary soldiers on night-time patrols in the diplomatic quarter and a number of companies stepped up security for visiting executives.&nbsp;More protection has been promised in the wake of the July 1 killings. 
 
&quot;We have already re-arranged security measures all over the country after the terror attack,&quot; said industries minister Amir Hossain Amu, who also heads the cabinet committee on law and order.&nbsp;&quot;All foreigners including diplomats, business travellers, garment buyers, investors and development partners are all covered by extra security.&quot; 
 
Industry sources say H&amp;M last week sent an email to all its vendors informing them about a series of upgraded security norms at its office in Bangladesh. 
 
&quot;We are in contact with our office in Dhaka, and none of H&amp;M&#39;s company workers are affected,&quot; a spokesman for the Swedish fashion retailer said in an email.&nbsp;&quot;We have safety routines to assure our co-workers safety on-site. Regarding our sourcing, there are no plans in changing any sourcing, but we are following developments closely.&quot; 
 
An official at El Corte Ingles, one of Europe&#39;s largest department store chains, said the company had moved all eight of its foreign staff out of the country and was observing a two-month &quot;hold period&quot;, before deciding whether they would return. 
 
All of the company&#39;s meetings in Dhaka have been cancelled, and would be rescheduled in Hong Kong, said the official, who declined to be identified. El Corte did not respond to a request for comment. 
 
One garment exporter, who also declined to be named, said he had already lost a $3.6 million order from privately-held French retailer Celio.&nbsp;&quot;They were supposed to come to Dhaka on July 13, but after the attack they cancelled the visit,&quot; he said. &quot;This meeting was vital for me. I tried to convince them to meet somewhere else, but they said they had already shifted the order to China.&quot;&nbsp;Celio did not respond to a request for comment. 
 
There are no signs yet of major buyers shifting orders away from Bangladesh, not least because the production cycle has entered the busy Christmas season and pulling out business now would be expensive and logistically challenging.&nbsp;But industry players fear that, over time, security worries may prompt buyers to look to up-and-coming garment centres such as Myanmar and Ethiopia that offer similar cost advantages to Bangladesh. 
 
&quot;There may not be any short-term impact, but medium-to-longer term, for sure,&quot; said Mohammadi Group&#39;s Huq.&nbsp;&quot;Buyers have a right to go wherever they feel their business is more secure, and most importantly, their lives. They do not want to die in Bangladesh.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Fears after the July 1 terror attack, which saw 20 killed, including 18 foreigners, threaten the $28 billion sector

Emdadul Islam's three-decade-long career in Bangladesh's garment trade has seen the industry hit by riots, labour unrest, power shortages and safety scandals, but he had never lost faith in its ability to weather the latest crisis and continue to grow. Now, after a group of radicalised young Bangladeshis killed about 20 people, including 18 foreigners, in an attack on an upscale Dhaka restaurant claimed by Islamic State, he fears for the future of the $28 billion sector. "I thought it impossible for this to happen in Bangladesh," said Islam, a director of Babylon Group, which makes garments for international brands like H&M and Tesco. "It was just a nightmare. This is not Afghanistan, or Pakistan, or something." Bangladesh relies on garments for more than 80 per cent of its exports and roughly 4 million jobs. It ranks behind only China as a clothing supplier to developed markets in Europe and the United States. But the July 1 attack has confronted the industry with its biggest image crisis since the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory building in 2013, with some fearing security worries could cripple a sector that is the lifeblood of the economy. "I never thought Islamic extremism would be a big threat to the industry directly, and I never thought it would happen quite like this," said Rubana Huq, managing director at the Mohammadi Group, which owns a string of garment factories and other businesses. Foreign companies, including Japan's Uniqlo, have suspended all but critical travel to the country since the attack, although there are no signs yet of big players moving orders elsewhere. The government says it has stepped up security for foreign business travellers, investors and diplomats. Black Friday Despite a long history of turbulent domestic politics that often spills onto the streets, Islam said the relative stability of Bangladesh compared with rival manufacturing bases had been an important factor in the rise of its garment sector. "When we started in the 1980s, Sri Lanka at that time was in a very volatile situation, so companies came to us. They wanted Bangladesh to produce - that's how we grew," said Islam, 60, one of the founding partners of garment maker Babylon Group back in 1986. Islamic State and al-Qaeda have made competing claims for a series of killings of liberals and members of Bangladesh's religious minorities in the past year. But the July 1 attack signalled a far more sophisticated threat from those seeking to replace the mainly Muslim country's secular democracy with strict Islamic rule. "On that night, we lost the identity of our country," said Mesbha Uddin Ali, chairman of garment maker Wega Group. What has been particularly shocking to many middle-class Bangladeshis is that the attackers mostly came from well-to-do backgrounds, and appear to have been radicalised only recently. "One of my friends called it 'Black Friday', which I think was pretty accurate," said an American in the garment industry, who has been living in Bangladesh for seven years. "Bangladesh has such a strong family culture, and yet the fact that these young, educated boys chose to leave that and do something like this is shocking." Many of the victims of the latest attack worked in the garment trade, and the US executive, who declined to be identified due to personal safety concerns, said it had prompted him to take extra precautions. "I don't walk anymore," he said. "I don't take the rickshaws anymore. And I'm not a man who likes to waste time, or money, so I did take a rickshaw for short distances. Now I just lay low." Some local executives have taken more drastic measures. "Earlier I had this pistol, but it was never loaded and I did not carry it," said Mohsin Uddin Ahmed Niru, a director of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA). "Now I carry it every day." Warning signs There had been warning signs that the radicalisation threat in Bangladesh was growing. An Italian aid worker was shot dead in Dhaka's diplomatic quarter in September 2015, in the same week masked gunmen killed a Japanese farmer in northern Bangladesh. In response, the government deployed paramilitary soldiers on night-time patrols in the diplomatic quarter and a number of companies stepped up security for visiting executives. More protection has been promised in the wake of the July 1 killings. "We have already re-arranged security measures all over the country after the terror attack," said industries minister Amir Hossain Amu, who also heads the cabinet committee on law and order. "All foreigners including diplomats, business travellers, garment buyers, investors and development partners are all covered by extra security." Industry sources say H&M last week sent an email to all its vendors informing them about a series of upgraded security norms at its office in Bangladesh. "We are in contact with our office in Dhaka, and none of H&M's company workers are affected," a spokesman for the Swedish fashion retailer said in an email. "We have safety routines to assure our co-workers safety on-site. Regarding our sourcing, there are no plans in changing any sourcing, but we are following developments closely." An official at El Corte Ingles, one of Europe's largest department store chains, said the company had moved all eight of its foreign staff out of the country and was observing a two-month "hold period", before deciding whether they would return. All of the company's meetings in Dhaka have been cancelled, and would be rescheduled in Hong Kong, said the official, who declined to be identified. El Corte did not respond to a request for comment. One garment exporter, who also declined to be named, said he had already lost a $3.6 million order from privately-held French retailer Celio. "They were supposed to come to Dhaka on July 13, but after the attack they cancelled the visit," he said. "This meeting was vital for me. I tried to convince them to meet somewhere else, but they said they had already shifted the order to China." Celio did not respond to a request for comment. There are no signs yet of major buyers shifting orders away from Bangladesh, not least because the production cycle has entered the busy Christmas season and pulling out business now would be expensive and logistically challenging. But industry players fear that, over time, security worries may prompt buyers to look to up-and-coming garment centres such as Myanmar and Ethiopia that offer similar cost advantages to Bangladesh. "There may not be any short-term impact, but medium-to-longer term, for sure," said Mohammadi Group's Huq. "Buyers have a right to go wherever they feel their business is more secure, and most importantly, their lives. They do not want to die in Bangladesh." (Reuters)

'Black Friday' massacre in Dhaka affects Bangladesh garment industry

At least 261 people across Bangladesh are missing, officials announced early on Wednesday, sparking fears many of them have joined homegrown Islamist extremist outfits or the Islamic State group in the Middle East. 
 
The country&#39;s elite security force, the Rapid Action Battalion, published the list on Facebook around midnight and called on citizens to report the whereabouts of the missing. 
 
&quot;We have to find them,&quot; RAB spokesman Mufti Mahmud Khan told AFP. 
 
The Bangladeshi government ordered security officials to collate the list in the wake of two major terror attacks by suspected Islamist militants who had been missing for months. 
 
Khan refused to comment on whether the people listed had joined local extremists or the IS group. 
 
Suspected members of a homegrown terror group murdered 20 people including 18 foreigners after they attacked an upscale cafe in Dhaka earlier this month. The IS group later claimed responsibility for the attack -- an assertion rejected by Bangladeshi authorities. 
 
The gruesome murders were followed by another daring assault on the Muslim-majority nation&#39;s largest Eid prayer congregation in which three people and an attacker were killed in a massive gunfight in a northern Bangladesh town. 
 
Police and parents said the five attackers at the cafe siege and at least two gunmen at the Eid carnage had been missing for months. 
 
&quot;If there are any missing family members, please tell us, don&#39;t be afraid that law-enforcement agencies will take your sons away,&quot; said RAB chief Benazir Ahmed. 
 
&quot;Their lives and other lives can be saved if they are found.&quot; 
 
Local media outlets have reported that dozens of people including doctors, engineers, and students from elite universities have travelled to the Middle East to join the IS group. 
 
In one case, engineer Najibullah Ansari had been missing for over a year when his parents reached out to the police after the government launched the campaign to account for the country&#39;s missing. 
 
According to his family, Ansari last contacted his younger brother in January 2015 via Facebook, saying he was in war-torn Iraq fighting with jihadists. 
 
&ldquo;I have come to Iraq. Tell father and mother not to worry for me. I have come here for jihad,&rdquo; read the message according to a screen shot seen by local daily Dhaka Tribune. 
 
&quot;I will never return home,&quot; he added. 
 
(AFP)

Rapid Action Battalion published the list on Facebook around midnight and called on citizens to report whereabouts of the missing

At least 261 people across Bangladesh are missing, officials announced early on Wednesday, sparking fears many of them have joined homegrown Islamist extremist outfits or the Islamic State group in the Middle East. The country's elite security force, the Rapid Action Battalion, published the list on Facebook around midnight and called on citizens to report the whereabouts of the missing. "We have to find them," RAB spokesman Mufti Mahmud Khan told AFP. The Bangladeshi government ordered security officials to collate the list in the wake of two major terror attacks by suspected Islamist militants who had been missing for months. Khan refused to comment on whether the people listed had joined local extremists or the IS group. Suspected members of a homegrown terror group murdered 20 people including 18 foreigners after they attacked an upscale cafe in Dhaka earlier this month. The IS group later claimed responsibility for the attack -- an assertion rejected by Bangladeshi authorities. The gruesome murders were followed by another daring assault on the Muslim-majority nation's largest Eid prayer congregation in which three people and an attacker were killed in a massive gunfight in a northern Bangladesh town. Police and parents said the five attackers at the cafe siege and at least two gunmen at the Eid carnage had been missing for months. "If there are any missing family members, please tell us, don't be afraid that law-enforcement agencies will take your sons away," said RAB chief Benazir Ahmed. "Their lives and other lives can be saved if they are found." Local media outlets have reported that dozens of people including doctors, engineers, and students from elite universities have travelled to the Middle East to join the IS group. In one case, engineer Najibullah Ansari had been missing for over a year when his parents reached out to the police after the government launched the campaign to account for the country's missing. According to his family, Ansari last contacted his younger brother in January 2015 via Facebook, saying he was in war-torn Iraq fighting with jihadists. “I have come to Iraq. Tell father and mother not to worry for me. I have come here for jihad,” read the message according to a screen shot seen by local daily Dhaka Tribune. "I will never return home," he added. (AFP)

Bangladesh: 260 people missing across country amid hunt for extremists

The International Crimes Tribunal awarded death sentence to three and life imprisonment to five others on Monday, as they were found guilty of war crimes during Bangladesh&#39;s war of independence in 1971. 
 
The suspects from Jamalpur region were accused of murder, abduction, torture, arson and loot.&nbsp;The court said in its verdict that charges against three of them have been proven beyond doubt. 
 
&quot;We have just received the verdict for the case concerning the crime committed in then Mahkuma (sub-division) of Jamalpur in 1971, we had eight accused persons in this case and we got 100 per cent conviction that is all eight of them are found guilty for the offences committed. However, as per as the sentencing is concerned, out of eight only three got death penalty and the rest of five got life imprisonment,&quot; said Tureen Afroz, a prosecutor, in Dhaka. 
 
The verdict comes as the Muslim-majority nation suffers a surge in militant violence in which atheist bloggers, academics, religious minorities and foreign aid workers have been killed. 
 
The government has blamed the increase in Islamist violence on Jamaat-e-Islami, but the group denies any link to the attacks. 
 
In May 2016, Bangladesh hanged an Islamist party leader, Motiur Rahman Nizami, for genocide and other crimes committed during the war, drawing an angry reaction and some scattered violence from supporters. 
 
Nizami, head of the Jamaat-e-Islami party, was executed at Dhaka Central jail just after midnight after the Bangladesh Supreme Court rejected his final plea against a death sentence imposed by a special tribunal for genocide, rape and orchestrating the massacre of intellectuals during the war. 
 
About three million people were killed, official figures show, and thousands of women were raped, during the nine-month war, in which some factions, including the Jamaat-e-Islami, opposed the break from what was then called west Pakistan. 
 
(Reuters)

Five others were given life imprisonment. The suspects from Jamalpur region were accused of murder, abduction, torture and loot

The International Crimes Tribunal awarded death sentence to three and life imprisonment to five others on Monday, as they were found guilty of war crimes during Bangladesh's war of independence in 1971. The suspects from Jamalpur region were accused of murder, abduction, torture, arson and loot. The court said in its verdict that charges against three of them have been proven beyond doubt. "We have just received the verdict for the case concerning the crime committed in then Mahkuma (sub-division) of Jamalpur in 1971, we had eight accused persons in this case and we got 100 per cent conviction that is all eight of them are found guilty for the offences committed. However, as per as the sentencing is concerned, out of eight only three got death penalty and the rest of five got life imprisonment," said Tureen Afroz, a prosecutor, in Dhaka. The verdict comes as the Muslim-majority nation suffers a surge in militant violence in which atheist bloggers, academics, religious minorities and foreign aid workers have been killed. The government has blamed the increase in Islamist violence on Jamaat-e-Islami, but the group denies any link to the attacks. In May 2016, Bangladesh hanged an Islamist party leader, Motiur Rahman Nizami, for genocide and other crimes committed during the war, drawing an angry reaction and some scattered violence from supporters. Nizami, head of the Jamaat-e-Islami party, was executed at Dhaka Central jail just after midnight after the Bangladesh Supreme Court rejected his final plea against a death sentence imposed by a special tribunal for genocide, rape and orchestrating the massacre of intellectuals during the war. About three million people were killed, official figures show, and thousands of women were raped, during the nine-month war, in which some factions, including the Jamaat-e-Islami, opposed the break from what was then called west Pakistan. (Reuters)

Bangladesh: Three awarded death penalty for 1971 war crimes

A group of machete-wielding men attacked members of a Sufi Muslim sect in western Bangladesh injuring three, police said today, the latest in a spate of attacks on religious minorities. 
 
About eight men, armed with bamboo sticks and machetes, set upon the Sufis on Saturday night while they were asleep in a village in the border district of Chuadanga. 
 
&quot;Three members of the group were beaten by the attackers. They include a 50-year-old woman who had suffered grievous injury with a sharp weapon,&quot; local police chief Humayun Kabir said. 
 
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack but Bangladesh is reeling from a wave of murders of secular and liberal activists and religious minorities by suspected Islamist extremists. 
 
Kabir said police suspect local hardline Muslims for the attack as the sect might have drawn the ire of the villagers due to their &quot;unconventional and un-social&quot; lifestyle. 
 
&quot;They are Muslim fakirs, who don&#39;t observe the daily Islamic prayer rituals. They sing devotional songs and have their own rituals,&quot; local council chief Abdul Hannan said, using another name for the sect. 
 
In May, a Sufi leader was hacked to death and earlier this month Bangladesh suffered a terror attack when Islamist gunmen stormed a Dhaka cafe popular with foreigners and killed 22. 
 
The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for that and several other attacks, but the Bangladesh government blames homegrown extremist groups. 
 
Sufi Islam is a mystical form of Islam popular in rural Bangladesh but considered deviant by many of the country&#39;s majority Sunni Muslims who denounce its followers as &quot;infidels&quot;. 
 
(AFP)

A 50-year-old woman was grievously injured. Eight men, armed with bamboo sticks and machetes, set upon the Sufis while they were asleep

A group of machete-wielding men attacked members of a Sufi Muslim sect in western Bangladesh injuring three, police said today, the latest in a spate of attacks on religious minorities. About eight men, armed with bamboo sticks and machetes, set upon the Sufis on Saturday night while they were asleep in a village in the border district of Chuadanga. "Three members of the group were beaten by the attackers. They include a 50-year-old woman who had suffered grievous injury with a sharp weapon," local police chief Humayun Kabir said. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack but Bangladesh is reeling from a wave of murders of secular and liberal activists and religious minorities by suspected Islamist extremists. Kabir said police suspect local hardline Muslims for the attack as the sect might have drawn the ire of the villagers due to their "unconventional and un-social" lifestyle. "They are Muslim fakirs, who don't observe the daily Islamic prayer rituals. They sing devotional songs and have their own rituals," local council chief Abdul Hannan said, using another name for the sect. In May, a Sufi leader was hacked to death and earlier this month Bangladesh suffered a terror attack when Islamist gunmen stormed a Dhaka cafe popular with foreigners and killed 22. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for that and several other attacks, but the Bangladesh government blames homegrown extremist groups. Sufi Islam is a mystical form of Islam popular in rural Bangladesh but considered deviant by many of the country's majority Sunni Muslims who denounce its followers as "infidels". (AFP)

Three Sufis injured in Bangladesh machete attack

A court in Bangladesh today formally charged 38 people with murder in connection with the 2013 collapse of the Rana Plaza building which killed 1,135 people in the country&#39;s worst industrial disaster. 
 
Forty-one defendants in total face charges over the collapse of the complex, which housed five garment factories supplying global brands. Plaza owner Sohel Rana is the principal accused. 
 
Public Prosecutor Abdul Mannan said 38 had been charged with murder while three had been charged with helping Rana to flee. 
 
Of the 41 charged, 35, including Rana, who is being held on remand, appeared before the court and pleaded not guilty, Mannan told reporters. 
 
The other six will be tried as fugitives from justice. 
 
The collapse of the complex, built on swampy ground outside the capital Dhaka, sparked demands for greater safety in the world&#39;s second-largest exporter of readymade garments and put pressure on companies buying clothing from Bangladesh to act. 
 
The duty-free access offered by Western nations and low wages for its workers helped turn Bangladesh&#39;s garment exports into an industry with $28 billion in annual revenue. 
 
The minimum monthly wage for garment workers in Bangladesh is $68, compared with about $280 in mainland China, which remains the world&#39;s biggest clothes exporter. 
 
(Reuters)&nbsp;

Collapse of the complex, built on swampy ground, sparked demands for greater safety in world's second-largest exporter of readymade garments

A court in Bangladesh today formally charged 38 people with murder in connection with the 2013 collapse of the Rana Plaza building which killed 1,135 people in the country's worst industrial disaster. Forty-one defendants in total face charges over the collapse of the complex, which housed five garment factories supplying global brands. Plaza owner Sohel Rana is the principal accused. Public Prosecutor Abdul Mannan said 38 had been charged with murder while three had been charged with helping Rana to flee. Of the 41 charged, 35, including Rana, who is being held on remand, appeared before the court and pleaded not guilty, Mannan told reporters. The other six will be tried as fugitives from justice. The collapse of the complex, built on swampy ground outside the capital Dhaka, sparked demands for greater safety in the world's second-largest exporter of readymade garments and put pressure on companies buying clothing from Bangladesh to act. The duty-free access offered by Western nations and low wages for its workers helped turn Bangladesh's garment exports into an industry with $28 billion in annual revenue. The minimum monthly wage for garment workers in Bangladesh is $68, compared with about $280 in mainland China, which remains the world's biggest clothes exporter. (Reuters)

Bangladesh's worst industrial disaster: 38 charged with murder in 2013 factory collapse

Police in Dhaka on Saturday arrested three people, including a university professor, for failing to register information about tenants renting a property who later attacked a cafe in the city, killing 20 people. 
 
Earlier this year, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) issued an order to all apartment owners to provide details of their tenants for a database to help police crack down on criminals and militants using rented accommodation as hideouts. 
 
Gias Uddin Ahsan, a professor at North South University in Dhaka, his nephew, and the manager of Ahsan&#39;s apartment were arrested by DMP for failing to comply with rules forcing landlords to register information about their tenants with the police, Mohammad Masudur Rahman, a senior police official told Reuters. 
 
The men will appear in court today, he said. 
 
Five militants who were killed by police after they stormed the cafe on July 1 had rented the apartment along with another person in a nearby residential area in May and started living there from June, Rahman said. 
 
&quot;From here they attacked the cafe. There were other militants also who fled after the attack,&quot; he said. 
 
&quot;We also found evidence that they kept grenades and other explosives in the apartment. If we had been informed they were living there, then that brutal killing would not have been possible and we could also have arrested the other militants who fled.&quot; 
 
Bangladesh has suffered a series of attacks on liberal and secular bloggers, LGBT rights activists, university teachers and members of religious minorities over the past year. The government says two domestic militant groups trying to replace secular democracy with Islamic sharia rule are responsible for the violence. 
 
Twenty people including 18 foreigners were killed before police stormed the cafe, rescued 13 hostages and shot five of the attackers dead. 
 
Interior Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said on Saturday that investigators had identified the masterminds of the attack and that the remaining perpetrators would soon be arrested. 
 
Some of the assailants had attended prestigious schools or universities and had been reported missing, according to the police. One was the son of a politician. 
 
(Reuters)

The landlords failed to register information about their tenants with police, a new law enacted earlier this year to help catch criminals

Police in Dhaka on Saturday arrested three people, including a university professor, for failing to register information about tenants renting a property who later attacked a cafe in the city, killing 20 people. Earlier this year, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) issued an order to all apartment owners to provide details of their tenants for a database to help police crack down on criminals and militants using rented accommodation as hideouts. Gias Uddin Ahsan, a professor at North South University in Dhaka, his nephew, and the manager of Ahsan's apartment were arrested by DMP for failing to comply with rules forcing landlords to register information about their tenants with the police, Mohammad Masudur Rahman, a senior police official told Reuters. The men will appear in court today, he said. Five militants who were killed by police after they stormed the cafe on July 1 had rented the apartment along with another person in a nearby residential area in May and started living there from June, Rahman said. "From here they attacked the cafe. There were other militants also who fled after the attack," he said. "We also found evidence that they kept grenades and other explosives in the apartment. If we had been informed they were living there, then that brutal killing would not have been possible and we could also have arrested the other militants who fled." Bangladesh has suffered a series of attacks on liberal and secular bloggers, LGBT rights activists, university teachers and members of religious minorities over the past year. The government says two domestic militant groups trying to replace secular democracy with Islamic sharia rule are responsible for the violence. Twenty people including 18 foreigners were killed before police stormed the cafe, rescued 13 hostages and shot five of the attackers dead. Interior Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said on Saturday that investigators had identified the masterminds of the attack and that the remaining perpetrators would soon be arrested. Some of the assailants had attended prestigious schools or universities and had been reported missing, according to the police. One was the son of a politician. (Reuters)

Bangladesh police arrest three who rented property to cafe attackers

Bangladesh&nbsp;on Friday&nbsp;moved to regulate weekly sermons in hundreds of thousands of mosques as part of a stepped-up campaign to combat Islamist extremism, officials said. 
 
The move comes after the deadly attack in an upscale Dhaka cafe in which 20 hostages were brutally shot and hacked to death in the nation&#39;s worst attack by suspected Islamist militants. 
 
Since then, authorities have shut down a television channel run by a controversial Indian preacher, and decided to monitor the social media and&nbsp;Friday&nbsp;sermons of local mosques in a bid to prevent radicalisation. 
 
As part of the drive, the state-run Islamic Foundation, which works as a watchdog for mosques and religious establishments, has prepared a sermon for the main national mosque which it has asked other mosques to follow. 
 
The sermon, which was published by the agency ahead of&nbsp;Friday&#39;s&nbsp;prayers, invokes Koranic verses and traditions of the prophet Mohammed to rail against murderous extremism. 
 
&quot;Whoever kills a person unjustly, it is as though he has killed all mankind,&quot; it said, citing a verse of the Koran. 
 
It also quoted the prophet as saying the killing of a human being is the biggest sin and urged parents to take good care of their children so they cannot be &quot;brainwashed&quot;. 
 
It was not clear how many of Bangladesh&#39;s mosques, which are run by independent neighbourhood lay committees, would follow the instructions. 
 
But a senior police official said local administrations, police and regional Islamic Foundation officials would &quot;monitor&quot; the sermons. 
 
Foundation chief Shamim Mohammad Afzal told AFP that the sermon had been distributed to more than 300,000 mosques. 
 
&quot;It is not mandatory but we hope the imams will follow our sermon or take their inspiration from it,&quot; he said. 
 
&quot;Our core message is there is no place for terrorism in Islam. We want to make sure our children cannot be brainwashed to commit an act of terrorism.&quot; 
 
Islamic parties, who have strongly denounced the cafe siege and a string of other recent attacks on minorities, have criticised the sermon regulation as &quot;undesirable&quot;. 
 
&quot;Long before the Foundation issued its instructions, our clerics have been vocal against terrorism,&quot; said Mufti Faiz Ullah, secretary general of Islamic Oikya Jote, a faith-based party. 
 
Last month, just ahead of the cafe attack, a pro-government council of clerics issued a fatwa against violent Jihad, which was endorsed by more than 100,000 imams. 
 
(AFP)

A state-run foundation has prepared a sermon for the main national mosque that invokes Koranic verses to rail against murderous extremism

Bangladesh on Friday moved to regulate weekly sermons in hundreds of thousands of mosques as part of a stepped-up campaign to combat Islamist extremism, officials said. The move comes after the deadly attack in an upscale Dhaka cafe in which 20 hostages were brutally shot and hacked to death in the nation's worst attack by suspected Islamist militants. Since then, authorities have shut down a television channel run by a controversial Indian preacher, and decided to monitor the social media and Friday sermons of local mosques in a bid to prevent radicalisation. As part of the drive, the state-run Islamic Foundation, which works as a watchdog for mosques and religious establishments, has prepared a sermon for the main national mosque which it has asked other mosques to follow. The sermon, which was published by the agency ahead of Friday's prayers, invokes Koranic verses and traditions of the prophet Mohammed to rail against murderous extremism. "Whoever kills a person unjustly, it is as though he has killed all mankind," it said, citing a verse of the Koran. It also quoted the prophet as saying the killing of a human being is the biggest sin and urged parents to take good care of their children so they cannot be "brainwashed". It was not clear how many of Bangladesh's mosques, which are run by independent neighbourhood lay committees, would follow the instructions. But a senior police official said local administrations, police and regional Islamic Foundation officials would "monitor" the sermons. Foundation chief Shamim Mohammad Afzal told AFP that the sermon had been distributed to more than 300,000 mosques. "It is not mandatory but we hope the imams will follow our sermon or take their inspiration from it," he said. "Our core message is there is no place for terrorism in Islam. We want to make sure our children cannot be brainwashed to commit an act of terrorism." Islamic parties, who have strongly denounced the cafe siege and a string of other recent attacks on minorities, have criticised the sermon regulation as "undesirable". "Long before the Foundation issued its instructions, our clerics have been vocal against terrorism," said Mufti Faiz Ullah, secretary general of Islamic Oikya Jote, a faith-based party. Last month, just ahead of the cafe attack, a pro-government council of clerics issued a fatwa against violent Jihad, which was endorsed by more than 100,000 imams. (AFP)

Bangladesh regulates?Friday?sermons after attacks

Singapore on Tuesday sentenced four Bangladeshis to between two and five years in jail after they pleaded guilty to raising money for an alleged Islamist terror plot in their home country. 
 
District Judge Kessler Soh said in handing down the sentences that &quot;terrorism is a clear and present danger&quot; which presents a &quot;threat not just to our community but the international community at large&quot;. 
 
Ringleader Rahman Mizanur, 31, was jailed for five years, the longest of the sentences. Two others, said to be the treasurers of the group, were each jailed for two-and-a-half years, and the fourth man got two years. 
 
&quot;Terrorism financing and any act of supporting terrorism must be roundly condemned and deterred,&quot; the judge said. 
 
&quot;Stiff punishment is needed in this case, not just to punish but also to deter others.&quot; 
 
The four, the first suspects to be prosecuted in Singapore under a new anti-terror law, were brought to court under heavy security by members of the city&#39;s elite Gurkha unit. 
 
Dressed in purple jumpsuits with the words &quot;detainee&quot; emblazoned across their backs, the men were shackled hand and foot. 
 
Court documents said the men contributed, collected or possessed funds for the alleged plot ranging from Sg$60 ($44) to Sg$1,360. 
 
Items seized from the men included manuals on bomb-making and how to use a 0.50 calibre sniper rifle, along with a list of Bangladesh government and military officials targeted for attack, Singapore&#39;s home affairs ministry had said. 
 
They were among a second group of Bangladeshis rounded up in Singapore since 27 were arrested in late 2015, also over alleged plots in their homeland. All from the first group have since been deported. 
 
Singapore, which depends heavily on Bangladeshis and other foreign workers in the construction sector, considers itself a potential target of extremists because of its strong military ties with the United States. 
 
(AFP)

They are?the first suspects to be prosecuted in Singapore under a new anti-terror law

Singapore on Tuesday sentenced four Bangladeshis to between two and five years in jail after they pleaded guilty to raising money for an alleged Islamist terror plot in their home country. District Judge Kessler Soh said in handing down the sentences that "terrorism is a clear and present danger" which presents a "threat not just to our community but the international community at large". Ringleader Rahman Mizanur, 31, was jailed for five years, the longest of the sentences. Two others, said to be the treasurers of the group, were each jailed for two-and-a-half years, and the fourth man got two years. "Terrorism financing and any act of supporting terrorism must be roundly condemned and deterred," the judge said. "Stiff punishment is needed in this case, not just to punish but also to deter others." The four, the first suspects to be prosecuted in Singapore under a new anti-terror law, were brought to court under heavy security by members of the city's elite Gurkha unit. Dressed in purple jumpsuits with the words "detainee" emblazoned across their backs, the men were shackled hand and foot. Court documents said the men contributed, collected or possessed funds for the alleged plot ranging from Sg$60 ($44) to Sg$1,360. Items seized from the men included manuals on bomb-making and how to use a 0.50 calibre sniper rifle, along with a list of Bangladesh government and military officials targeted for attack, Singapore's home affairs ministry had said. They were among a second group of Bangladeshis rounded up in Singapore since 27 were arrested in late 2015, also over alleged plots in their homeland. All from the first group have since been deported. Singapore, which depends heavily on Bangladeshis and other foreign workers in the construction sector, considers itself a potential target of extremists because of its strong military ties with the United States. (AFP)

Singapore jails four Bangladeshis for financing terrorism

A group of fashion brands and retailers including Gap and Wal Mart working to improve safety in Bangladeshi factories, are still committed to sourcing from the country despite a series of attacks claimed by Islamist militants. 
 
&quot;Member companies will continue to stay the course,&quot; James Moriarty, country director for the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, told a conference call for journalists. &quot;I am not aware of brands withdrawing or cancelling contracts.&quot; 
 
The Alliance of mostly North American companies was set up in 2013 to improve safety in Bangladeshi factories after the collapse of the Rana Plaza complex in which more than 1,100 people died. 
 
Some foreign companies working in Bangladesh&#39;s garment industry have suspended travel to the country after an attack by Islamist militants on a restaurant in Dhaka on July 1. 
 
The US State Department on Monday warned Americans to consider carefully whether they need to travel to Bangladesh. 
 
&quot;The advice from most embassies is to keep as low a profile as possible,&quot; said Moriarty, a former US ambassador to Bangladesh, who said he had returned to Dhaka on Saturday. 
 
Moriarty said many major brands were holding off on sending foreign staff to the country, although most had Bangladeshi or South Asian staff leading their operations in the country. 
 
&quot;I do have confidence that the people who are committing these attacks are a very small minority with very small support,&quot; he said. 
 
Moriarty said the Alliance - set to run until 2018 - was ahead of schedule in improving safety at the some 700 factories its 28 members work with in Bangladesh, calling the safety drive a &quot;moral imperative&quot;. 
 
In the first quarter of 2016, the Alliance suspended another six factories for failing to do enough to improve safety, bringing the total to 83, while Moriarty said 28 factories have completed plans to address safety issues. 
 
(Reuters)

Former US ambassador to Bangladesh, however, said many major brands were holding off on sending foreign staff to the country

A group of fashion brands and retailers including Gap and Wal Mart working to improve safety in Bangladeshi factories, are still committed to sourcing from the country despite a series of attacks claimed by Islamist militants. "Member companies will continue to stay the course," James Moriarty, country director for the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, told a conference call for journalists. "I am not aware of brands withdrawing or cancelling contracts." The Alliance of mostly North American companies was set up in 2013 to improve safety in Bangladeshi factories after the collapse of the Rana Plaza complex in which more than 1,100 people died. Some foreign companies working in Bangladesh's garment industry have suspended travel to the country after an attack by Islamist militants on a restaurant in Dhaka on July 1. The US State Department on Monday warned Americans to consider carefully whether they need to travel to Bangladesh. "The advice from most embassies is to keep as low a profile as possible," said Moriarty, a former US ambassador to Bangladesh, who said he had returned to Dhaka on Saturday. Moriarty said many major brands were holding off on sending foreign staff to the country, although most had Bangladeshi or South Asian staff leading their operations in the country. "I do have confidence that the people who are committing these attacks are a very small minority with very small support," he said. Moriarty said the Alliance - set to run until 2018 - was ahead of schedule in improving safety at the some 700 factories its 28 members work with in Bangladesh, calling the safety drive a "moral imperative". In the first quarter of 2016, the Alliance suspended another six factories for failing to do enough to improve safety, bringing the total to 83, while Moriarty said 28 factories have completed plans to address safety issues. (Reuters)

Factory safety group sticks by Bangladesh after attacks

A huge earthquake may be building beneath Bangladesh, which can turn urban areas in eastern India into &quot;ruins&quot;, a new study has warned. 
 
Scientists said they have new evidence of increasing strain where two tectonic plates underlie the world&#39;s largest river delta. 
 
They estimate that at least 140 million people in the region could be affected if the boundary ruptures; the destruction could come not only from the direct results of shaking, but changes in the courses of great rivers, and in the level of land already perilously close to sea level. 
 
The newly identified threat is a subduction zone, where one section of earth&#39;s crust, or a tectonic plate, is slowly thrusting under another. 
 
Strain between tectonic plates building for at least 400 years&nbsp; 
 
All of earth&#39;s biggest known earthquakes occur along such zones; these include the Indian Ocean quake and tsunami that killed some 230,000 people in 2004, and the 2011 Tohoku quake and tsunami off Japan, which swept away more than 20,000 and caused the Fukushima nuclear disaster. 
 
Up to now, all known such zones were only under the ocean; this one appears to be entirely under the land, which greatly multiplies the threat. 
 
The strain between the plates has been building for at least 400 years -- the span of reliable historical records, which lack reports of any mega-quake, said lead author Michael Steckler, a geophysicist at Columbia University. 
 
When an inevitable release comes, the shaking is likely to be larger than magnitude 8.2 on the Richter scale and could even reach a magnitude of 9, similar to the largest known modern quakes, said Steckler. 
 
 
Bangladesh, eastern India sit atop vulnerable landscape&nbsp; 
 
A giant plate comprising India and much of the Indian Ocean has been thrusting northeasterly into Asia for tens of millions of years, researchers said. 
 
This collision has caused the Himalayas to rise to the north, bringing events like the 2015 Nepal quake that killed nearly 9,000 people. 
 
Bangladesh and eastern India sit atop a landscape vulnerable even to moderate earthquakes: the vast delta of the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers, researchers said. 
 
This is basically a pile of mud as deep as 12 miles, washed from the Himalayas to the coast, covering the subduction zone. 
 
In a quake, this low-lying substrate would magnify the shaking like gelatin, and liquefy in many places, sucking in buildings, roads and people, said study coauthor Syed Humayun Akhter, a geologist at Dhaka University. 
 
&quot;We don&#39;t have a good idea of its geometry, we don&#39;t know how far it goes down,&quot; said James Ni, a seismologist at New Mexico State University. 
 
He said that if researchers are right, and the slab is building strain, a quake would probably turn urban areas in eastern India &quot;into ruins,&quot; and effects likely would extend into Myanmar and beyond. 
 
The findings appear in the journal Nature Geoscience.&nbsp; 
 
(PTI)&nbsp;

When an inevitable release comes, shaking is likely to be larger than magnitude 8.2 on Richter scale and could even reach a magnitude of 9

A huge earthquake may be building beneath Bangladesh, which can turn urban areas in eastern India into "ruins", a new study has warned. Scientists said they have new evidence of increasing strain where two tectonic plates underlie the world's largest river delta. They estimate that at least 140 million people in the region could be affected if the boundary ruptures; the destruction could come not only from the direct results of shaking, but changes in the courses of great rivers, and in the level of land already perilously close to sea level. The newly identified threat is a subduction zone, where one section of earth's crust, or a tectonic plate, is slowly thrusting under another. Strain between tectonic plates building for at least 400 years All of earth's biggest known earthquakes occur along such zones; these include the Indian Ocean quake and tsunami that killed some 230,000 people in 2004, and the 2011 Tohoku quake and tsunami off Japan, which swept away more than 20,000 and caused the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Up to now, all known such zones were only under the ocean; this one appears to be entirely under the land, which greatly multiplies the threat. The strain between the plates has been building for at least 400 years -- the span of reliable historical records, which lack reports of any mega-quake, said lead author Michael Steckler, a geophysicist at Columbia University. When an inevitable release comes, the shaking is likely to be larger than magnitude 8.2 on the Richter scale and could even reach a magnitude of 9, similar to the largest known modern quakes, said Steckler. Bangladesh, eastern India sit atop vulnerable landscape A giant plate comprising India and much of the Indian Ocean has been thrusting northeasterly into Asia for tens of millions of years, researchers said. This collision has caused the Himalayas to rise to the north, bringing events like the 2015 Nepal quake that killed nearly 9,000 people. Bangladesh and eastern India sit atop a landscape vulnerable even to moderate earthquakes: the vast delta of the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers, researchers said. This is basically a pile of mud as deep as 12 miles, washed from the Himalayas to the coast, covering the subduction zone. In a quake, this low-lying substrate would magnify the shaking like gelatin, and liquefy in many places, sucking in buildings, roads and people, said study coauthor Syed Humayun Akhter, a geologist at Dhaka University. "We don't have a good idea of its geometry, we don't know how far it goes down," said James Ni, a seismologist at New Mexico State University. He said that if researchers are right, and the slab is building strain, a quake would probably turn urban areas in eastern India "into ruins," and effects likely would extend into Myanmar and beyond. The findings appear in the journal Nature Geoscience. (PTI)

Massive earthquake threat looms over Bangladesh, India; 140 million people may be at risk: Study

Bangladesh has ruled out playing England&#39;s cricket team in a third country in September, an idea floated after a deadly terror attack in the capital killed 18 foreigners last week.&nbsp; 
 
England are scheduled to arrive in Bangladesh on September 30 to play two Tests and three one-day internationals. 
 
England&#39;s limited-over captain Eion Morgan voiced &quot;big concern&quot; after last Saturday&#39;s attack by Islamist extremists at an upmarket restaurant, saying a neutral venue could be an option for the series. 
&nbsp; 
And an England and Wales Cricket Board spokesman hinted at a possible cancellation of the Bangladesh tour saying that &quot;if the environment is not acceptably safe or the right measures not in place, we would take the appropriate steps&quot;. 
 
However, Bangladesh Cricket Board chief executive officer Nizamuddin Chowdhury told reporters in Dhaka today that Bangladesh wanted the matches to go ahead on home turf. 
 
&quot;We always believe suspending cricket in a particular country will not bring any solution,&quot; Chowdhury said.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Our all-out effort will be fulfilling our commitment of hosting the series here,&quot; he added.&nbsp; 
 
He also noted that a security delegation from England would be coming to inspect the security measures in place ahead of the games. 
&nbsp; 
&quot;England security delegate was supposed to visit last month. But they are taking time,&quot; he said.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;They will also tour India after Bangladesh series. Perhaps,they will do the security inspection both in India and Bangladesh together.&quot; 
&nbsp; 
Australia pulled out of a tour of Bangladesh last year due to security concerns. The West Indies Under-19 side also aborted a tour in 2013 after an explosion near their hotel in the southern city of Chittagong. 
 
Chowdhury said the International Cricket Council is working on updated security protocol to deal with the problem globally.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;It`s not just a problem of Bangladesh. Many developed countries in the world, who have strong security barriers, face some incidents too.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Still, whenever we host an international series, we take special security measures. We have hosted many major ICC events, despite many challenges,&quot; he said. 
 
(AFP) 
&nbsp;

England are scheduled to arrive in Bangladesh on September 30 to play two tests and three one-day internationals

Bangladesh has ruled out playing England's cricket team in a third country in September, an idea floated after a deadly terror attack in the capital killed 18 foreigners last week. England are scheduled to arrive in Bangladesh on September 30 to play two Tests and three one-day internationals. England's limited-over captain Eion Morgan voiced "big concern" after last Saturday's attack by Islamist extremists at an upmarket restaurant, saying a neutral venue could be an option for the series. And an England and Wales Cricket Board spokesman hinted at a possible cancellation of the Bangladesh tour saying that "if the environment is not acceptably safe or the right measures not in place, we would take the appropriate steps". However, Bangladesh Cricket Board chief executive officer Nizamuddin Chowdhury told reporters in Dhaka today that Bangladesh wanted the matches to go ahead on home turf. "We always believe suspending cricket in a particular country will not bring any solution," Chowdhury said. "Our all-out effort will be fulfilling our commitment of hosting the series here," he added. He also noted that a security delegation from England would be coming to inspect the security measures in place ahead of the games. "England security delegate was supposed to visit last month. But they are taking time," he said. "They will also tour India after Bangladesh series. Perhaps,they will do the security inspection both in India and Bangladesh together." Australia pulled out of a tour of Bangladesh last year due to security concerns. The West Indies Under-19 side also aborted a tour in 2013 after an explosion near their hotel in the southern city of Chittagong. Chowdhury said the International Cricket Council is working on updated security protocol to deal with the problem globally. "It`s not just a problem of Bangladesh. Many developed countries in the world, who have strong security barriers, face some incidents too. "Still, whenever we host an international series, we take special security measures. We have hosted many major ICC events, despite many challenges," he said. (AFP)

Bangladesh rule out playing England in neutral venue

A Bangladeshi teenager who police say was a suspect in last week&#39;s deadly attack on a Dhaka cafe has died in custody, with his family insisting he was a hostage and alleging torture by security forces. 
 
Zakir Hossain Shawon, 18, a kitchen assistant at the Holey Artisan Bakery, was arrested after last week&#39;s deadly siege by suspected Islamists in which 22 people, including 18 foreigners, died. 
 
Police killed five attackers and arrested Shawon together with another man over &quot;suspicious activities&quot;, treating him as a suspect -- a claim vehemently rejected by his family, who claim he was taken hostage like other victims. 
 
He died in the intensive care unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital late Friday after five days in the clinic, police and his family said. 
 
Shawon&#39;s father Abdus Sattar demanded an investigation into his death, saying his &quot;innocent son and the main breadwinner of his family&quot; died due to torture. 
 
&quot;His whole body had marks of torture. There were marks of curdled blood in many places. One of his eyes and two knees were blackened. His wrists were blackened. It seems he was hanged by ropes tied to his wrists,&quot; Sattar told AFP. 
 
Nur Khan Liton, the head of Ain o Salish Kendra, a leading human rights group, said there were doubts about Shawon`s involvement in the attack, which was claimed by the Islamic State group. 
 
&quot;IS has named five attackers and police have identified all five. And he was not among the five,&quot; he said. 
 
&quot;If he was treated as an associate or helper of the attacker, police must present evidence or information.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Police and military representatives denied that Shawon had been tortured in custody. 
 
&quot;He was held because of suspicious activities. We did not have any opportunity to interrogate him since he was injured and hospitalised,&quot; Dhaka police spokesman Masudur Rahman told AFP. 
 
The teenager`s father said he spoke with his son hours before the July 1 carnage when Shawon called to say he had received a bonus payment for Eid al-Fitr, the largest Muslim festival.&nbsp; 
 
He had planned to travel home to celebrate the occasion with the family in Dhaka`s suburb.&nbsp;Instead his family saw him in hospital. 
 
&quot;He could not recognise me or his mother and thought we were his brother,&quot; the father said.&nbsp;&quot;He would cry out in his sleep, pleading with someone, &quot;Please don&#39;t hit me. Let me go,&quot; he added. 
 
(AFP) 
&nbsp;

Parents insist on his innocence, and a human rights group say police have identified all five suspects and that he is not among them

A Bangladeshi teenager who police say was a suspect in last week's deadly attack on a Dhaka cafe has died in custody, with his family insisting he was a hostage and alleging torture by security forces. Zakir Hossain Shawon, 18, a kitchen assistant at the Holey Artisan Bakery, was arrested after last week's deadly siege by suspected Islamists in which 22 people, including 18 foreigners, died. Police killed five attackers and arrested Shawon together with another man over "suspicious activities", treating him as a suspect -- a claim vehemently rejected by his family, who claim he was taken hostage like other victims. He died in the intensive care unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital late Friday after five days in the clinic, police and his family said. Shawon's father Abdus Sattar demanded an investigation into his death, saying his "innocent son and the main breadwinner of his family" died due to torture. "His whole body had marks of torture. There were marks of curdled blood in many places. One of his eyes and two knees were blackened. His wrists were blackened. It seems he was hanged by ropes tied to his wrists," Sattar told AFP. Nur Khan Liton, the head of Ain o Salish Kendra, a leading human rights group, said there were doubts about Shawon`s involvement in the attack, which was claimed by the Islamic State group. "IS has named five attackers and police have identified all five. And he was not among the five," he said. "If he was treated as an associate or helper of the attacker, police must present evidence or information." Police and military representatives denied that Shawon had been tortured in custody. "He was held because of suspicious activities. We did not have any opportunity to interrogate him since he was injured and hospitalised," Dhaka police spokesman Masudur Rahman told AFP. The teenager`s father said he spoke with his son hours before the July 1 carnage when Shawon called to say he had received a bonus payment for Eid al-Fitr, the largest Muslim festival. He had planned to travel home to celebrate the occasion with the family in Dhaka`s suburb. Instead his family saw him in hospital. "He could not recognise me or his mother and thought we were his brother," the father said. "He would cry out in his sleep, pleading with someone, "Please don't hit me. Let me go," he added. (AFP)

Dhaka cafe attack suspect dies in custody, family alleges police torture

Bangladesh has been hit by a surge in Islamist attacks in the past three years that reached new heights last weekend when 20 hostages were murdered in Dhaka. 
 
The wave of attacks has been notably brutal with many of the victims, including the hostages, hacked to death with machetes. 
 
One week on from the end of the siege at an upmarket cafe in the capital, AFP looks at some of the factors that might be responsible for fuelling the attacks and at how the government is reacting: 
 
Bangladesh has been blighted by unrest since it broke from Pakistan in a war of independence in 1971 and has witnessed more than a dozen coups. 
 
Islamist groups such as Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and the newer Ansarullah Bangla Team have long posed a challenge to authorities, with the JMB killing at least 28 people in a bombing campaign in 2005. 
 
The group, blamed by the government for the Dhaka siege, was banned after the 2005 attacks and is seen as a largely spent force following the subsequent arrest and execution of its leaders. 
 
While the 2005 attacks were largely indiscriminate, the recent killings have had specific targets, including secular bloggers and gay activists. 
 
Members of minority groups such as Hindus, Christians and Sufi Muslims have also been victims, with many of them hacked to death. 
 
Although a handful of foreigners had previously been killed, last weekend&#39;s siege was by far the deadliest attack. 
 
The victims included nine Italians and seven Japanese. Experts point to several factors behind the recent violence, including the execution of top Islamists over their role in the independence war. 
 
Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in 2013 to protest at the guilty verdicts handed down by a domestic tribunal that critics say was intent on neutering opposition to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. 
 
The Supreme Court then barred the biggest Islamist political party Jamaat-e-Islami from contesting the 2014 general election, disenfranchising millions of supporters. 
 
The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, allied to Jamaat, subsequently boycotted the polls. What was then effectively a one-horse race was held against the backdrop of firebombings across the country. 
 
Many observers say the lack of genuine democracy has made Bangladesh a fertile ground for extremists. 
 
&quot;There is a lot of support for the organisations (Hasina) is trying to quash,&quot; said C. Christine Fair, associate professor at Georgetown University in Washington and South Asia expert. 
 
&quot;The country is torn. She is essentially silencing, politically, half the country. &quot;Both the Islamic State (IS) organisation and the competing Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) have claimed many of the attacks. 
 
However, the government insists international jihadist networks have not got a foothold in Bangladesh and that local extremists are culpable. 
 
There is little evidence that IS trains and funds attackers in the country, although it has recruited Bangladeshis to fight in Syria.&nbsp; 
 
More likely, analysts say, is that radicalised youths are being inspired by the group and pledge allegiance -- a murky line in the age of social media. 
 
During the cafe siege, IS was sent gruesome pictures of the carnage by the attackers, which it immediately distributed via its affiliate news agency Amaq. 
 
Al-Qaeda may have more of a claim of presence in Bangladesh, with Bangladeshi fighters aiding the anti-Soviet mujahedeen in Afghanistan as far back as the 1980s. 
 
&quot;The ties to AQIS are much more credible. South Asia is Al-Qaeda territory,&quot; said Fair. The use of machetes has become a chilling hallmark of the murders and nearly all the slain hostages were attacked with sharp blades, even though their killers had automatic weapons. 
 
Some experts say a lack of access to suicide vests or car bombs explains the prevalence of machete attacks, but others see a more deliberate reason behind the brutal killing style. 
 
&quot;They wanted to show the world that they can go to any extent for jihad,&quot; said K G Suresh of New Delhi&#39;s Vivekananda International Foundation think-tank. Bangladesh is intensely politically polarised, characterised by a poisonous rivalry between Hasina and the main opposition leader Khaleda Zia that stretches back decades. 
 
Although around 90 per cent of Bangladesh&#39;s 160 million-strong population is Muslim, mostly Sunni, the nation is officially secular. 
 
Creeping popular support for fundamentalism has led to mounting calls for Islamist representation in government and public life.&nbsp; 
 
One recent study found around 47 per cent of Bangladeshis say suicide bombing is justifiable to defend Islam, higher than other Muslim-majority nation in South and Southeast Asia. 
 
(AFP)

12 hours, six terrorists and 29 dead, the Dhaka siege was one of the deadliest in a spate of violence that Bangladesh has been witnessing

Bangladesh has been hit by a surge in Islamist attacks in the past three years that reached new heights last weekend when 20 hostages were murdered in Dhaka. The wave of attacks has been notably brutal with many of the victims, including the hostages, hacked to death with machetes. One week on from the end of the siege at an upmarket cafe in the capital, AFP looks at some of the factors that might be responsible for fuelling the attacks and at how the government is reacting: Bangladesh has been blighted by unrest since it broke from Pakistan in a war of independence in 1971 and has witnessed more than a dozen coups. Islamist groups such as Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and the newer Ansarullah Bangla Team have long posed a challenge to authorities, with the JMB killing at least 28 people in a bombing campaign in 2005. The group, blamed by the government for the Dhaka siege, was banned after the 2005 attacks and is seen as a largely spent force following the subsequent arrest and execution of its leaders. While the 2005 attacks were largely indiscriminate, the recent killings have had specific targets, including secular bloggers and gay activists. Members of minority groups such as Hindus, Christians and Sufi Muslims have also been victims, with many of them hacked to death. Although a handful of foreigners had previously been killed, last weekend's siege was by far the deadliest attack. The victims included nine Italians and seven Japanese. Experts point to several factors behind the recent violence, including the execution of top Islamists over their role in the independence war. Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in 2013 to protest at the guilty verdicts handed down by a domestic tribunal that critics say was intent on neutering opposition to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The Supreme Court then barred the biggest Islamist political party Jamaat-e-Islami from contesting the 2014 general election, disenfranchising millions of supporters. The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, allied to Jamaat, subsequently boycotted the polls. What was then effectively a one-horse race was held against the backdrop of firebombings across the country. Many observers say the lack of genuine democracy has made Bangladesh a fertile ground for extremists. "There is a lot of support for the organisations (Hasina) is trying to quash," said C. Christine Fair, associate professor at Georgetown University in Washington and South Asia expert. "The country is torn. She is essentially silencing, politically, half the country. "Both the Islamic State (IS) organisation and the competing Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) have claimed many of the attacks. However, the government insists international jihadist networks have not got a foothold in Bangladesh and that local extremists are culpable. There is little evidence that IS trains and funds attackers in the country, although it has recruited Bangladeshis to fight in Syria. More likely, analysts say, is that radicalised youths are being inspired by the group and pledge allegiance -- a murky line in the age of social media. During the cafe siege, IS was sent gruesome pictures of the carnage by the attackers, which it immediately distributed via its affiliate news agency Amaq. Al-Qaeda may have more of a claim of presence in Bangladesh, with Bangladeshi fighters aiding the anti-Soviet mujahedeen in Afghanistan as far back as the 1980s. "The ties to AQIS are much more credible. South Asia is Al-Qaeda territory," said Fair. The use of machetes has become a chilling hallmark of the murders and nearly all the slain hostages were attacked with sharp blades, even though their killers had automatic weapons. Some experts say a lack of access to suicide vests or car bombs explains the prevalence of machete attacks, but others see a more deliberate reason behind the brutal killing style. "They wanted to show the world that they can go to any extent for jihad," said K G Suresh of New Delhi's Vivekananda International Foundation think-tank. Bangladesh is intensely politically polarised, characterised by a poisonous rivalry between Hasina and the main opposition leader Khaleda Zia that stretches back decades. Although around 90 per cent of Bangladesh's 160 million-strong population is Muslim, mostly Sunni, the nation is officially secular. Creeping popular support for fundamentalism has led to mounting calls for Islamist representation in government and public life. One recent study found around 47 per cent of Bangladeshis say suicide bombing is justifiable to defend Islam, higher than other Muslim-majority nation in South and Southeast Asia. (AFP)

Rising violence in Bangladesh: What's behind it?

India today denied that a team of National Security Gaurd (NSG) was visiting Bangladesh amidst reports that it was in Dhaka to study the recent terrorist attacks that have shocked that country. 
 
External Affairs Spokesperson Vikas Swarup, who is currently in South Africa accompanying Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said,&quot;Just to clarify, reports of an NSG team visiting Bangladesh are false.&quot; 
 
His remarks came amidst reports that a special team of NSG officers was visiting Bangladesh to &quot;analyse and study&quot; the bombings at an Eid prayer gathering yesterday and the recent terror siege at a high-end restaurant in the neighbouring country. 
 
Officials had said that the NSG team has been authorised by the government to travel to Dhaka after the Special Forces establishment in Bangladesh approved the former&#39;s request to visit the spots of the terror attacks for a first-hand understanding of the situation. 
 
The team, which includes NSG experts in post-blast analysis and counter-terror operations, was to study the July 1 incident where terrorists laid siege at a bakery and killed 22 and also analyse yesterday&#39;s bombings in Kishoreganj area in Bangladesh, they had said.&nbsp; 
 
(PTI)&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;

There were reports that a special team of NSG officers was visiting Bangladesh to "analyse and study" the recent bombings in the country

India today denied that a team of National Security Gaurd (NSG) was visiting Bangladesh amidst reports that it was in Dhaka to study the recent terrorist attacks that have shocked that country. External Affairs Spokesperson Vikas Swarup, who is currently in South Africa accompanying Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said,"Just to clarify, reports of an NSG team visiting Bangladesh are false." His remarks came amidst reports that a special team of NSG officers was visiting Bangladesh to "analyse and study" the bombings at an Eid prayer gathering yesterday and the recent terror siege at a high-end restaurant in the neighbouring country. Officials had said that the NSG team has been authorised by the government to travel to Dhaka after the Special Forces establishment in Bangladesh approved the former's request to visit the spots of the terror attacks for a first-hand understanding of the situation. The team, which includes NSG experts in post-blast analysis and counter-terror operations, was to study the July 1 incident where terrorists laid siege at a bakery and killed 22 and also analyse yesterday's bombings in Kishoreganj area in Bangladesh, they had said. (PTI)

India denies reports of NSG team visiting Bangladesh

Bangladesh has launched a clampdown on social media sites spreading jihadist propaganda after an attack on a Dhaka cafe in which 20 hostages were murdered, saying the country&#39;s young were being radicalised online. 
 
Authorities said the deadly siege at an upmarket cafe popular with foreigners had been an &quot;eye-opener&quot;, exposing the role of social media in recruiting young men to jihadist groups. 
 
&quot;Social media has become a fertile ground for recruiting militants,&quot; the head of the telecoms regulator Shahjahan Mahmood told AFP. 
 
&quot;The attack was an eye-opener for us. They (jihadist groups) attract the young men through social media.&quot; 
 
The Islamic State group, which has claimed Friday night&#39;s attack, has long used social media to recruit fighters and incite individuals around the world to commit terrorist attacks. 
 
Mahmood said the Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (BTRC) had ordered YouTube to remove videos of &quot;radical preachings&quot;, including those of the firebrand cleric Jashim Uddin Rahmani. 
 
He was sentenced to five years in jail last December after his speeches were found to have incited Islamist militants to kill the atheist blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider in early 2013. 
 
Shortly after the cafe siege, it emerged that several of the Bangladesh attackers were young, tech-savvy men from wealthy families and had easy access to social media. 
 
The father of 22-year-old Rohan Imtiaz, one of the suspected attackers killed when commandoes stormed the cafe, has said he believes his son may have been radicalised online. 
 
Imtiaz reportedly posted an appeal on Facebook last year urging all Muslims to become terrorists and quoting a controversial Indian preacher who has been banned in Britain, Canada and Malaysia. 
 
&quot;He was a practising Muslim. So many people are. Maybe he was radicalised through the internet,&quot; his father Imtiaz Khan Babul told AFP. 
 
&quot;But I never checked what he was browsing...Someone may have brainwashed him.&quot; 
 
Bangladesh police issued a stern warning Wednesday that anyone caught sharing jihadist propaganda online would be punished in the wake of the unprecedented attack in Dhaka. 
 
&quot;Uploading, sharing, commenting or liking any video, images or speech in the social media such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube in support of the Islamic State or militancy is a punishable offence,&quot; Deputy Inspector General of police AKM&nbsp;Shahidur Rahman said. 
 
&quot;If anyone is found to have engaged in such activities, tough legal action will be taken against that person.&quot; 
 
Photos of carnage&nbsp; 
Survivors of the cafe siege have told how the young attackers seized mobile phones from hostages and forced them to provide their passwords so they could send out photographs of the carnage that were quickly disseminated by IS. 
 
Some reports said they had brought laptops, and ordered cafe workers to switch on the wifi. 
 
Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are already working around the clock to take down jihadist accounts, but they often pop up again under different names. 
 
Experts say IS supporters are also turning to smaller social media platforms like Telegram, a messenger app, to disseminate their propaganda. 
 
Facebook and Twitter have removed some posts and Mahmood, of the telecoms regulator, said the government would bring in tougher laws to tackle radicalism on social media. 
 
Bangladeshi police have set up a special email address and urged people to report any suspicious online activities following last week&#39;s attack. 
 
Meanwhile the head of the country&#39;s elite security force appealed to Bangladeshis to be vigilant over the use of social media sites as a recruiting tool, and to report missing relatives. 
 
&quot;If there are any missing family members, please tell us, don&#39;t be afraid that law-enforcing agencies will take your sons away,&quot; said Benazir Ahmed. 
 
&quot;Their lives and other lives can be saved if they are found.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

Facebook, Twitter and YouTube already work hard to take down jihadist accounts, but they often pop up again under different names

Bangladesh has launched a clampdown on social media sites spreading jihadist propaganda after an attack on a Dhaka cafe in which 20 hostages were murdered, saying the country's young were being radicalised online. Authorities said the deadly siege at an upmarket cafe popular with foreigners had been an "eye-opener", exposing the role of social media in recruiting young men to jihadist groups. "Social media has become a fertile ground for recruiting militants," the head of the telecoms regulator Shahjahan Mahmood told AFP. "The attack was an eye-opener for us. They (jihadist groups) attract the young men through social media." The Islamic State group, which has claimed Friday night's attack, has long used social media to recruit fighters and incite individuals around the world to commit terrorist attacks. Mahmood said the Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (BTRC) had ordered YouTube to remove videos of "radical preachings", including those of the firebrand cleric Jashim Uddin Rahmani. He was sentenced to five years in jail last December after his speeches were found to have incited Islamist militants to kill the atheist blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider in early 2013. Shortly after the cafe siege, it emerged that several of the Bangladesh attackers were young, tech-savvy men from wealthy families and had easy access to social media. The father of 22-year-old Rohan Imtiaz, one of the suspected attackers killed when commandoes stormed the cafe, has said he believes his son may have been radicalised online. Imtiaz reportedly posted an appeal on Facebook last year urging all Muslims to become terrorists and quoting a controversial Indian preacher who has been banned in Britain, Canada and Malaysia. "He was a practising Muslim. So many people are. Maybe he was radicalised through the internet," his father Imtiaz Khan Babul told AFP. "But I never checked what he was browsing...Someone may have brainwashed him." Bangladesh police issued a stern warning Wednesday that anyone caught sharing jihadist propaganda online would be punished in the wake of the unprecedented attack in Dhaka. "Uploading, sharing, commenting or liking any video, images or speech in the social media such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube in support of the Islamic State or militancy is a punishable offence," Deputy Inspector General of police AKM Shahidur Rahman said. "If anyone is found to have engaged in such activities, tough legal action will be taken against that person." Photos of carnage Survivors of the cafe siege have told how the young attackers seized mobile phones from hostages and forced them to provide their passwords so they could send out photographs of the carnage that were quickly disseminated by IS. Some reports said they had brought laptops, and ordered cafe workers to switch on the wifi. Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are already working around the clock to take down jihadist accounts, but they often pop up again under different names. Experts say IS supporters are also turning to smaller social media platforms like Telegram, a messenger app, to disseminate their propaganda. Facebook and Twitter have removed some posts and Mahmood, of the telecoms regulator, said the government would bring in tougher laws to tackle radicalism on social media. Bangladeshi police have set up a special email address and urged people to report any suspicious online activities following last week's attack. Meanwhile the head of the country's elite security force appealed to Bangladeshis to be vigilant over the use of social media sites as a recruiting tool, and to report missing relatives. "If there are any missing family members, please tell us, don't be afraid that law-enforcing agencies will take your sons away," said Benazir Ahmed. "Their lives and other lives can be saved if they are found." (AFP)

Bangladesh clamps down on social media spreading jihadist propaganda

An eerie silence pervades the restaurants and shopping malls in Dhaka&#39;s diplomatic quarter, usually teeming with well-heeled urbanites, now standing empty since the killing of 20 hostages at a popular cafe.&nbsp;Five days after the brutal siege at the Holey Artisan Bakery in the Bangladeshi capital, many establishments remain closed, with shaken residents of Gulshan too afraid to venture out. 
 
&quot;Our guest numbers have gone down dramatically so the management took the decision to keep it shut for a while,&quot; said Abdul Mazid, a guard at Meraki, a well-known restaurant in the neighbourhood. 
 
The run-up to Eid celebrations that mark the end of the holy month of Ramzan usually sees shopping malls overflowing with crowds and millions of Dollars changing hands in just a few days.&nbsp;But this year Gulshan DCC market, usually bustling with Eid shoppers ahead of the biggest festival in the Muslim calendar, stood deserted. 
 
At least five gunmen stormed the bakery on Friday evening, sparking an 11-hour stand-off with police that saw victims murdered with machetes, most of them Italian or Japanese.&nbsp;Around the corner from the site of the bloodbath, Thai restaurant Soi 71 and neighbouring Korean diner Suaron, which usually remain lively past midnight, were shuttered on Tuesday. 
 
&quot;Ours is a happening business, it&#39;s hard to believe how quiet it has become over the past few days,&quot; said Mohammad Farhan, manager of the upmarket Butlers Chocolate Cafe, where waiters were standing around. 
 
&quot;It has just turned upside down.&quot; 
 
Britain was among countries urging its citizens to avoid areas frequented by foreigners, such as international hotels, large supermarkets or clubs, while Japanese firm Uniqlo restricted non-urgent travel for employees.&nbsp;As Dhaka residents attempt to regroup, fears are mounting that the attack may herald an escalation of violence in Bangladesh. 
 
Islamist militants have been blamed for a wave of murders of foreigners, religious minorities and secular writers over the past three years.&nbsp;However, Friday&#39;s murders were on a totally different scale. 
 
&quot;I keep thinking about escape routes in our apartment and the building complex... I am too scared to be in my city any more,&quot; Dhaka-based private university researcher Shahana Siddiqui posted on Facebook.&nbsp;The revelation that the attackers were educated, well-off members of society has sparked fears that Islamism has become a fashion not confined to disenfranchised youngsters being radicalised in madrasas. 
 
&quot;Missing young men are potential moving bombs now. They can strike anywhere, any time,&quot; Mushtaq Ahmed, an entrepreneur, posted on social media.&nbsp;At a mourning ceremony for the dead at a heavily secured park in Gulshan on Monday night, some expressed fears that the weekend attack will not be the last. 
 
&quot;What we are seeing today is only the tip of the iceberg,&quot; retired Brigadier General Sakhawat Hossain, a security analyst, told the gathering.&nbsp;&quot;They came to kill and propagate their agenda. The ideology is there among our children.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

The residents of Gulshan are scared to venture out, tourists have been told to avoid the country and restaurants are closed after the attack

An eerie silence pervades the restaurants and shopping malls in Dhaka's diplomatic quarter, usually teeming with well-heeled urbanites, now standing empty since the killing of 20 hostages at a popular cafe. Five days after the brutal siege at the Holey Artisan Bakery in the Bangladeshi capital, many establishments remain closed, with shaken residents of Gulshan too afraid to venture out. "Our guest numbers have gone down dramatically so the management took the decision to keep it shut for a while," said Abdul Mazid, a guard at Meraki, a well-known restaurant in the neighbourhood. The run-up to Eid celebrations that mark the end of the holy month of Ramzan usually sees shopping malls overflowing with crowds and millions of Dollars changing hands in just a few days. But this year Gulshan DCC market, usually bustling with Eid shoppers ahead of the biggest festival in the Muslim calendar, stood deserted. At least five gunmen stormed the bakery on Friday evening, sparking an 11-hour stand-off with police that saw victims murdered with machetes, most of them Italian or Japanese. Around the corner from the site of the bloodbath, Thai restaurant Soi 71 and neighbouring Korean diner Suaron, which usually remain lively past midnight, were shuttered on Tuesday. "Ours is a happening business, it's hard to believe how quiet it has become over the past few days," said Mohammad Farhan, manager of the upmarket Butlers Chocolate Cafe, where waiters were standing around. "It has just turned upside down." Britain was among countries urging its citizens to avoid areas frequented by foreigners, such as international hotels, large supermarkets or clubs, while Japanese firm Uniqlo restricted non-urgent travel for employees. As Dhaka residents attempt to regroup, fears are mounting that the attack may herald an escalation of violence in Bangladesh. Islamist militants have been blamed for a wave of murders of foreigners, religious minorities and secular writers over the past three years. However, Friday's murders were on a totally different scale. "I keep thinking about escape routes in our apartment and the building complex... I am too scared to be in my city any more," Dhaka-based private university researcher Shahana Siddiqui posted on Facebook. The revelation that the attackers were educated, well-off members of society has sparked fears that Islamism has become a fashion not confined to disenfranchised youngsters being radicalised in madrasas. "Missing young men are potential moving bombs now. They can strike anywhere, any time," Mushtaq Ahmed, an entrepreneur, posted on social media. At a mourning ceremony for the dead at a heavily secured park in Gulshan on Monday night, some expressed fears that the weekend attack will not be the last. "What we are seeing today is only the tip of the iceberg," retired Brigadier General Sakhawat Hossain, a security analyst, told the gathering. "They came to kill and propagate their agenda. The ideology is there among our children." (AFP)

Eerie silence envelopes Dhaka's diplomatic quarter, Eid celebrations dampened

A pizza chef killed during a militant attack on a cafe where he worked in Bangladesh&#39;s capital city last week was probably in league with the assailants, police said on Wednesday. 
 
Saiful Islam Chowkidar carried no arms but was seen &quot;moving and running&quot; with the five gunmen during the 12-hour stand-off, Monirul Islam, the chief of counter-terrorism police, said. 
 
On Friday, at least five Bangladeshi men had stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery, a cafe popular with foreigners, businessmen and diplomats and killed 20 customers, including Italians, Japanese, Indians and Americans. 
 
On Tuesday, police said Chowkidar was shot dead by mistake but Islam revised that, saying his death was &quot;not accidental&quot;, although police were unsure how he died and the role he played. 
 
&quot;At one point they (militants) tried to escape. They came out running and started firing, the chef was with them,&quot; Islam told reporters. &quot;He is a suspect member of this group.&quot; 
 
Two other suspects being treated in hospital were also employees of the cafe, police said. One worked as a delivery man and the other in the kitchen. 
 
&quot;Before the final operations, their movement was suspicious,&quot; Islam said. 
 
The attack was one of the deadliest ever in Bangladesh, where the Islamic State and al Qaeda have made competing claims for a series of killings of liberals and members of religious minorities in the past year. The government has dismissed those claims and insists that the violence is homegrown. 
 
The gunmen were mostly from well-to-do families and police gave their names as: Nibras Islam, 20; Rohan Imtiaz, 20; Meer Saameh Mubasheer, 19; Khairul Islam, 22; Shafiqul Islam, 26. 
 
Their attack marked a major escalation in violence aimed at forcing strict Islamic rule onto predominantly Muslim Bangladesh&#39;s 160 million people. 
 
Foreign security experts say the scale and sophistication of the attack pointed to some level of guidance from international militant groups. 
 
But the police believe Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), an outlawed domestic group that has pledged allegiance to Islamic State, was to blame. 
 
&quot;We have confirmed these attacks were by JMB,&quot; Islam said. 
 
Meanwhile, Islamic State warned that attacks would continue until Islamic law was established worldwide, saying in a video that the Dhaka assault was just a hint of what is to come. 
 
&quot;What you witnessed in Bangladesh ... was a glimpse. This will repeat, repeat and repeat until you lose and we win and the sharia is established throughout the world,&quot; said a man identified as Bangladeshi fighter Abu Issa al-Bengali, in the video monitored by SITE intelligence site. 
 
The video began with pictures of recent attacks in Paris, Brussels and Orlando in the United States that the Middle East-based militants have claimed. 
 
Bengali said Bangladesh must know that it was now part of a bigger battlefield to establish the cross-border &quot;caliphate&quot; the group proclaimed in 2014. 
 
Police said they were stepping up security in response to the video threat. 
 
(Reuters)

Saiful Islam carried no arms but was seen 'moving and running' with the five gunmen, said the chief of counter-terrorism police

A pizza chef killed during a militant attack on a cafe where he worked in Bangladesh's capital city last week was probably in league with the assailants, police said on Wednesday. Saiful Islam Chowkidar carried no arms but was seen "moving and running" with the five gunmen during the 12-hour stand-off, Monirul Islam, the chief of counter-terrorism police, said. On Friday, at least five Bangladeshi men had stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery, a cafe popular with foreigners, businessmen and diplomats and killed 20 customers, including Italians, Japanese, Indians and Americans. On Tuesday, police said Chowkidar was shot dead by mistake but Islam revised that, saying his death was "not accidental", although police were unsure how he died and the role he played. "At one point they (militants) tried to escape. They came out running and started firing, the chef was with them," Islam told reporters. "He is a suspect member of this group." Two other suspects being treated in hospital were also employees of the cafe, police said. One worked as a delivery man and the other in the kitchen. "Before the final operations, their movement was suspicious," Islam said. The attack was one of the deadliest ever in Bangladesh, where the Islamic State and al Qaeda have made competing claims for a series of killings of liberals and members of religious minorities in the past year. The government has dismissed those claims and insists that the violence is homegrown. The gunmen were mostly from well-to-do families and police gave their names as: Nibras Islam, 20; Rohan Imtiaz, 20; Meer Saameh Mubasheer, 19; Khairul Islam, 22; Shafiqul Islam, 26. Their attack marked a major escalation in violence aimed at forcing strict Islamic rule onto predominantly Muslim Bangladesh's 160 million people. Foreign security experts say the scale and sophistication of the attack pointed to some level of guidance from international militant groups. But the police believe Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), an outlawed domestic group that has pledged allegiance to Islamic State, was to blame. "We have confirmed these attacks were by JMB," Islam said. Meanwhile, Islamic State warned that attacks would continue until Islamic law was established worldwide, saying in a video that the Dhaka assault was just a hint of what is to come. "What you witnessed in Bangladesh ... was a glimpse. This will repeat, repeat and repeat until you lose and we win and the sharia is established throughout the world," said a man identified as Bangladeshi fighter Abu Issa al-Bengali, in the video monitored by SITE intelligence site. The video began with pictures of recent attacks in Paris, Brussels and Orlando in the United States that the Middle East-based militants have claimed. Bengali said Bangladesh must know that it was now part of a bigger battlefield to establish the cross-border "caliphate" the group proclaimed in 2014. Police said they were stepping up security in response to the video threat. (Reuters)

Holey Artisan chef was probably working with attackers: Bangladesh police

Bangladeshi police said Tuesday they are investigating whether security forces accidentally shot dead an innocent kitchen worker when they stormed a Dhaka cafe where Islamist attackers were holding people hostage. 
 
Relatives raised the alarm after recognising Saiful Islam Chowkider, who made pizzas and pasta at the cafe, among the pictures of suspected attackers that police released after the siege. 
 
&quot;We think that he was accidentally shot dead,&quot; said police official Saiful Islam of the 39-year-old cafe worker. &quot;We are investigating.&quot; 
 
Bangladeshi security forces shot dead six men when they stormed the cafe on Saturday morning, bringing the all-night siege to an end after the death of 20 hostages. One suspected attacker was captured alive. 
 
Chowkider&#39;s cousin Solaiman said the family assumed he had been rescued until they saw his photo among the pictures of suspected attackers that police released to the public. 
 
&quot;We protested. We said he was never a militant. He was a hardworking man and one of the best pizza and pasta makers in Bangladesh,&quot; he told AFP. 
 
&quot;We went to the military, but they would not hand over the body, they said he was a suspect.&quot; 
 
Solaiman said the whole family was shocked by the death of Chowkider, who worked for many years in Germany, learning to make Italian food. 
 
He is survived by two daughters and his wife, who is pregnant.

'We think that he was accidentally shot dead,' said a police official. 'We are investigating'

Bangladeshi police said Tuesday they are investigating whether security forces accidentally shot dead an innocent kitchen worker when they stormed a Dhaka cafe where Islamist attackers were holding people hostage. Relatives raised the alarm after recognising Saiful Islam Chowkider, who made pizzas and pasta at the cafe, among the pictures of suspected attackers that police released after the siege. "We think that he was accidentally shot dead," said police official Saiful Islam of the 39-year-old cafe worker. "We are investigating." Bangladeshi security forces shot dead six men when they stormed the cafe on Saturday morning, bringing the all-night siege to an end after the death of 20 hostages. One suspected attacker was captured alive. Chowkider's cousin Solaiman said the family assumed he had been rescued until they saw his photo among the pictures of suspected attackers that police released to the public. "We protested. We said he was never a militant. He was a hardworking man and one of the best pizza and pasta makers in Bangladesh," he told AFP. "We went to the military, but they would not hand over the body, they said he was a suspect." Solaiman said the whole family was shocked by the death of Chowkider, who worked for many years in Germany, learning to make Italian food. He is survived by two daughters and his wife, who is pregnant.

Bangladesh police may have accidentally killed Holey Artisan employee

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