DHAKA: Two Islamist extremists sentenced to death for their role in the murder of a publisher escaped from a Bangladesh court on Sunday after their guards were subdued with a chemical spray, police said.

The two men were among eight members of the outlawed Ansar al Islam group sentenced last year for the 2015 killing of Faisal Arefin Dipan, who was targeted for publishing the works of a prominent atheist writer.

“When the officers were bringing out the convicts, two motorbike riders came in and blinded officers by spraying their faces,” police detective branch chief Harunur Rashid told reporters.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan ordered a nationwide manhunt for the escapees and pledged a bounty of two million taka ($19,500) for any information leading to their arrest.

“Police have launched a search for them. We believe we can catch them very soon, Khan told reporters.

“We have also sealed the border so they cannot leave the country.” K. N. Roy Niyati, a spokesman for Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said the men were aged 33 and 24 and used multiple aliases.

Ansar al Islam, a local extremist group linked with the Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), grabbed headlines last decade when their members were accused of hacking to death several secular bloggers, atheist writers and gay rights activists.

Bangladesh has since launched a nationwide crackdown against Islamist extremists, outlawing half a dozen groups, killing more than a hundred militants in raids and arresting hundreds of suspected extremists.

Published in Dawn, November 21st, 2022

Opinion

Editorial

Judiciary’s SOS
Updated 28 Mar, 2024

Judiciary’s SOS

The ball is now in CJP Isa’s court, and he will feel pressure to take action.
Data protection
28 Mar, 2024

Data protection

WHAT do we want? Data protection laws. When do we want them? Immediately. Without delay, if we are to prevent ...
Selling humans
28 Mar, 2024

Selling humans

HUMAN traders feed off economic distress; they peddle promises of a better life to the impoverished who, mired in...
New terror wave
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

New terror wave

The time has come for decisive government action against militancy.
Development costs
27 Mar, 2024

Development costs

A HEFTY escalation of 30pc in the cost of ongoing federal development schemes is one of the many decisions where the...
Aitchison controversy
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

Aitchison controversy

It is hoped that higher authorities realise that politics and nepotism have no place in schools.