Zakir Hossain / Dhaka
Bangladesh’s security forces have arrested more than 1,300 people under “Operation Devil Hunt,” launched amid nationwide unrest. The interim government, led by chief adviser Muhammad Yunus, has vowed to continue the crackdown until “all devils” are uprooted.
The operation was ordered on Saturday after student activists were injured in vandalism at the home of an Awami League leader in Gazipur. Joint forces, including the army and police, arrested 274 people within 24 hours, mainly in metropolitan cities.
Home affairs adviser Lt Gen (retired) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said, “This operation will target those who are desperate to destabilise the country. It will continue until all devils are rooted out.”
In Gazipur, 81 Awami League activists were arrested after clashes erupted during an attack on the residence of former Liberation War Affairs minister and Awami League leader Mozammel Haque. The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement claims their activists were attacked while preventing looting. A student was shot during protests outside the Gazipur Police’s deputy commissioner’s office. Hasina loyalists have been on the run since her government was toppled in a mass uprising on August 5 last year. Many, including Hasina, face charges of crimes against humanity for the brutal crackdown on protesters.
Hasina, 77, fled to India and recently addressed supporters online, sparking fresh violence. Mobs vandalised Awami League-linked properties and set fire to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s historic 32 Dhanmondi residence