Five supporters of one of its main Islamist organizations Bangladesh were killed by gunfire during violent clashes in the country’s cities between law enforcement and protesters protesting against the visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, police said.
Violent protests erupted as Bangladesh celebrated its 50th anniversary of independence, with the government highlighting the country’s economic success – overshadowed by human rights abuses, according to human rights groups.
The visit of Indian nationalist Narendra Modi, who arrived in Dhaka yesterday on the occasion of this anniversary, sparked days of protests by protesters accusing him of promoting nationalist policies in India. He is accused of inciting violence against Muslims that killed thousands of people in the Indian state of Gujarat in 2002, while he was the leader of that state.
Four victims of Friday’s clashes were members of the Islamic organization Hefazat-e-Islam and the violent clashes took place in the small rural town of Hatazari, where the group’s main leaders are based, police added.
Ruhul Amin, the city’s mayor, said about 1,500 Hefazat supporters launched a surprise attack on a police station, shouting slogans against Monti.
Hefazat’s spokesman, on the other hand, spoke of a “peaceful” demonstration in which police “opened fire”.
Hatazari is home to one of the country’s leading Islamic seminaries and the headquarters of Hefazat, which was founded in 2010 and is considered the largest radical Islamic organization in Bangladesh.
Violent incidents also broke out in Jatrabari, an area of ​​Dhaka and Brahmanbaria in eastern Bangladesh.
In the city of Brahmanbaria, a man was killed in clashes with police, a police spokesman told AFP. According to him, the police “opened fire” and threw tear gas in the direction of the protesters.
Hefazat’s spokesman claimed that the victim was a supporter of the Islamic organization. According to him, 100,000 people responded to the call for demonstrations in 22 cities in Bangladesh.
The organization often holds large demonstrations, demanding, among other things, anti-blasphemy laws.
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