The Government of Bangladesh has expressed deep concerns over the mob violence on the night of May 17, 2024 in the capital of Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek. “We have conveyed our concerns to Kyrgyzstan. Our students also came under attack but no one was severely injured,” Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud told reporters today (May 19, 2024). He said they are closely monitoring the situation through the Embassy in Uzbekistan, concurrently accredited to the Kyrgyz Republic. Read more: South Asian students, inc Bangladeshis, endure night of horrors in Kyrgyz capital The Embassy is in constant communication with Bangladeshi students who are currently studying in Kyrgyzstan, as well as with Kyrgyz government officials. There are no reports of any serious injury or casualty among Bangladeshi students so far. Mob attack in Kyrgyzstan: Panicked Bangladeshi students want to return home for a few weeks The Embassy has already shared an emergency contact number on its official Facebook page. Through the Embassy in Uzbekistan, the government is coordinating with the relevant authorities of Kyrgyzstan, including the ministries of foreign affairs and internal affairs, to ensure the safety and security of Bangladeshi students. “We are closely and constantly monitoring the developments. We have asked our Ambassador stationed in Tashkent to visit Bishkek soon to inquire about the wellbeing of Bangladeshi students,” said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement. Mob attack in Kyrgyzstan: Pakistan repatriates 140 students from Bishkek

International students from Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan have been targeted by violent mobs in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan. The violence began on the night of May 17, after social media posts alleged that Kyrgyz youths had been beaten by foreign students. The mobs quickly mobilized, targeting specific areas in the city where international students reside. Pleas for Help from Bangladeshi Students Samia Kabir, a Bangladeshi student at the International School of Medicine in Bishkek, reached out to UNB in a state of distress. “We are here, five Bangladeshi girls. We are inside our apartment right now. Some people are gathering in front of our apartment. Please help us,” she pleaded on the evening of May 18. She further added, “We have been asked by the authorities to stay inside. We hear some noises from other apartments nearby…some Pakistanis are likely to be there.” Mustafa, another Bangladeshi student living in an area farther from the capital, commented on the overall situation, noting that the Bangladeshi student population in Kyrgyzstan exceeds 1,000. He mentioned that those outside Bishkek feel relatively safer, but the danger remains, especially in shared hostels where students from Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan live together. Read more: South Asian students, inc Bangladeshis, endure night of horrors in Kyrgyz capital Why Kyrgyzstan Attracts Foreign Students Kyrgyzstan has become a preferred destination for students from South Asia seeking quality medical education. According to the Migration Data Portal, in 2021, Kyrgyzstan hosted the highest number of international students among Central Asian countries, with a total of 61,418. The country’s appeal includes a low cost of living, access to subcontinental cuisine, a favorable student-teacher ratio, and no entrance fees, making it an attractive option for medical students from Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. The Incident that Sparked the Violence The violence is believed to have been triggered by an incident of harassment involving female students from Egypt. A video showing a brawl between Kyrgyz and Egyptian students, circulated widely on social media on May 13, led to public outrage. The fight was seen as a gross disrespect to the hospitality extended to foreign students. On the night of May 17, many Kyrgyz youths took to the streets, accusing officials of leniency towards the foreign students involved in the incident. Despite police efforts, which included the immediate detention of three students involved in the fight, the unrest escalated.

State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohammad A. Arafat has voiced concerns over the actions of police during peaceful demonstrations at various US universities, describing the use of force as “disproportionate” and “inappropriate.” These protests, primarily led by students and faculty members, were organised to support Palestinian rights. “The rallies are mostly being conducted peacefully; there hasn't been any violence, arson, or killing of cops, children, or women, unlike what the BNP-Jamaat arsonists did in Bangladesh,” Arafat stated in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. The protests have taken place across numerous prestigious US college campuses, with participants advocating for the freedom of the Palestinian people. Arafat emphasised the peaceful nature of these demonstrations, highlighting the absence of violence and arson, which are often associated with protests elsewhere. Columbia University students vow to continue anti-war protest amid standoff with administrators. “It’s only some students and professors who are protesting against what they believe is wrong. There was no sign of violence or arson,” Arafat reiterated. Despite the peaceful conduct of the protesters, the response by law enforcement has been notably aggressive, according to Arafat. The number of police forces seen to contain the people shows no respect for protests by civilians, he observed. Reflecting on how such situations are handled in Bangladesh, Arafat speculated on the reaction of the US administration to similar circumstances. “I wonder what the US administration would do in the face of BNP-Jamaat violence and arson in the name of the so-called protest that they displayed a few months ago to impede the election and obstruct the democratic process in Bangladesh,” the state minister said. Bangladesh always stands by people of Palestine: Environment Minister Arafat condemned violence, stating, “I strongly believe that there is no place for violence in democracy.” He also shared a distressing account of a university professor who, despite her academic credentials from the University of California, Berkeley, was mistreated by police. “Unlike the BNP-Jamaat terrorists in Bangladesh, she did not seem like an extremist, getting herself indulging in violence or arson,” he explained. The professor was reportedly verbally abused and violently arrested. Arafat concluded by affirming the fundamental democratic rights to assembly and protest, which he argued should be respected universally: “The right to assembly and the right to protest need to be respected in all democracies.” Israel-Hamas war protesters and police clash on Texas campus, Columbia University begins suspensions

Police today arrested a local leader of BNP from Birampur upazila of Dinajpur district in connection with a case filed over attempt to set fire to a rail track. The arrestee was identified as Haidar Ali, joint secretary of Birampur unit of BNP. Subrata Kumar, officer-in-charge of Birampur Police Station, said police arrested Haider from the upazila in the morning. Earlier, a case was filed against eight identified people and several unidentified people in connection with the attempt to set fire to a rail track last night. Read: Rail track bolts stolen from Kurigram-Rangpur railway line  Haidar was the prime accused in the case. He was handed over to Railway Police after primary interrogation. “Police are trying to arrest the other accused in the case,” said the OC. ATM Nurul Islam, in-charge of Parbatipur Railway Station, said miscreants are trying to destroy lives and property through sabotage activities on railways but their attempt was foiled due to strict surveillance by police. Last night, law enforcers foiled miscreants’ attempt to set fire to a rail track in Birampur upazila of Dinajpur district. Read: Two motorcyclists killed in Sylhet road crash  Mia Ranjan, sub-inspector of Birampur Police Station, said a group of people set fire to the slipper of rail tracks near No 2 Litchi Bagan in Birampur municipality area between 8 pm and 9 pm. Noticing smoke, police and Ansar members rushed to the spot and extinguished the blaze. They also managed to halt the Khulna-bound Shimanto Express train, which was scheduled to go through the area, a few yards away, saving lives and property.  

Helper of a truck suffered burn injuries from a petrol bomb attack in Narayanganj’s Sonargaon area on Tuesday (November 28, 2023) night.  Md Saimon, 20, is currently undergoing treatment at Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery.  Miscreants hurled a petrol bomb at the truck at Singlabo area, said Sheikh Billal Hossain, additional superintendent of police in Narayanganj. Bus set on fire in Gazipur during 24-hour blockade Police are working to identify the arsonist, he said.  The tiles-carrying truck was on its way to Sirajganj from Sonargaon’s  Meghnaghat area through the Asian Highway.  Car torched, bombs exploded at the house of Feni BNP leader The truck driver managed to get down quickly, and several parts of the truck were burnt.  Locals rescued the helper and rushed him to hospital. On information, police rushed to the spot and extinguished the fire with the help of locals.  Crude bombs explode near Sitakunda AL leader’s house

Miscreants set a stationary bus on fire in Mohadevpur upazila of Naogaon district on Sunday (November 26, 2023) night during the ongoing 48-hour blockade called by the BNP and some like-minded parties. Locals said miscreants set the bus of ‘Rahi Travels’ on fire around 11:30 pm. Being informed, a firefighting unit from Mohadevpur station rushed to the spot and doused the flame, said the fire station’s team leader Ashraful Rahman, adding that 50 percent of the bus got burnt. Read more: Dialogue possible with political parties, not arsonists: Hasan Mahmud Mozaffar Hossain, officer-in-charge of Mohadevpur Police Station, said they arrested two BNP workers in this connection. The arrestees are Sujauzzaman Raju, 55, president of Ward No.1 under Mohadevpur union the upazila and local activist Ataur Rahaman Ata, he said. Legal actions will be taken in this regard, the OC added. Read more: No way to compromise with arsonists: PM Hasina

Police foiled a sabotage attempt of miscreants to derail a train in Fatullah on Dhaka-Narayanganj route, ahead of the latest 48-hour road-rail-waterway blockade across Bangladesh called by BNP, Jamaat and like-minded opposition parties. Mokhlesur Rahman, sub-inspector of Narayanganj Government Railway Police, said miscreants attached a heavy iron plate to the rail line at Kotolerbagh in an attempt to derail the train. Locals first noticed it and informed police through the national emergency number 999. 562 arrested by RAB on charges of sabotage since Oct 28 On information, police rushed to the spot and removed the iron plate from the rail line. Police are trying to arrest those involved in the sabotage attempt, he said. RAB arrests 4, including Sramik Dal leader, from Dhaka's Jatrabari in sabotage case

A 48-hour hartal — called by BNP, Jamaat and like-minded opposition parties — protesting the general election schedule announced by the Election Commission (EC) is underway from this morning (November 19, 2023) amid fear of violence. This is the first hartal being observed by the opposition parties since the EC announced the polls schedule. BNP, Jamaat and other opposition parties called the hartal after they had earlier observed five countrywide blockades of roads, rail and waterways. The blockades were marked by frequent burning of vehicles, particularly buses, in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country. The presence of law enforcement personnel at several points in Dhaka is higher today compared to the previous blockades. Read more: 'Scrap polls schedule, create atmosphere for fair election first': BNP Number of public transport on Dhaka streets was fewer than that during the blockades. Many were seen heading towards their destinations on foot amid heightened tension and fear of violence. Rickshaws are dominating Dhaka streets while a few private vehicles are on the road. Unidentified arsonists set seven vehicles on fire, including a passenger train, in Dhaka and across the country between 7 pm last night and 6 am today, ahead of the 48-hour countrywide hartal. Three buses were torched in the capital’s Gulistan, Dhanmondi and Mirpur areas last night. Read more: Jatiya Party to decide on joining or boycotting polls within a couple of days:Chunnu One bus each in Cumilla and Chattogram and a pickup van in Joypurhat were also set on fire ahead of the hartal. Arsonists set three compartments of ‘Jamuna Express’ train on fire in Sarishabari upazila of Jamalpur early today. Miscreants exploded three crude bombs in front of the residence of Dhaka University vice chancellor last night, spreading panic among students. At a press briefing yesterday, BNP leader Ruhul Kabir Rizvi called upon people from all walks of life and opposition leaders and activists to observe the hartal peacefully and make it a success. Read more: 12th JS election: Shakib buys AL nomination forms for 3 different constituencies

The United States has reiterated that it remains neutral, without taking any side, and urged all political parties of Bangladesh to de-escalate and eschew violence and find ways for peaceful elections. “We are on no particular political party’s side. We want free and fair elections conducted in a peaceful manner,” US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas told reporters today (November 15, 2023). No scope for dialogue now: Quader acknowledges receiving Donald Lu’s letter from Peter Haas He called upon all sides to de-escalate, eschew violence and try to figure out a way to have dialogue without pre-conditions to improve the election atmosphere. Ambassador Haas made the remarks after a meeting with Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader at the Secretariat. Peter Haas has requested meetings with senior leaders of 3 major parties: US Embassy He said they delivered the same message to all political parties in Bangladesh, that the United States remains neutral ahead of the upcoming polls. Earlier, Ambassador Haas requested meetings with senior leaders of the three major political parties to underscore the US position regarding the upcoming election. Haas meets CEC, hopes all sides will engage in dialogue without preconditions Meanwhile, US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller on Tuesday said, “We have consistently said that we believe elections in Bangladesh should be free and fair and open, and they should take place free of violence.”

Bangladesh has expressed its displeasure to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk over a recent letter to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and a press note on the country “without waiting for fuller information and facts.” “We expect that human rights mechanisms would give themselves adequate time before jumping to conclusions without the benefit of full facts to avoid the risks of being influenced by rumors and unverified information,” according to Bangladesh’s response to Türk on November 10. The letter seen by UNB notes that the UN rights chief’s letter, dated November 1, 2023, addressed to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, has been written “hastily without waiting for fuller information and facts” to emerge and without allowing sufficient time for reflection. The letter mentioned that a press note was also “hurriedly released” from Türk’s office on the same issue without consulting Bangladesh, and without taking into consideration the facts and figures the country provided along with “horrific images and video footage taken from neutral sources.” Guided by the obligations emanated from the constitution, Bangladesh side said that the government has been allowing and extending necessary cooperation to all political parties including Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to arrange assemblies, protests, processions etc. Read: Bangladesh can be an ideal location for BRI, IPS cooperation: Prof Imtiaz In this spirit the government allowed mass assemblies convened by different political parties on October 28, 2023 on the streets of Dhaka despite the declared objective of a major opposition party – BNP – to create anarchy and disconnect Dhaka from other parts of Bangladesh as a pressure tactic, reads the letter. During its rally and strike on October 28-29, the unruly activists of BNP – “misguided” by the propaganda of its leaders – took recourse to indiscriminate street violence, arson, other forms of violent activities on the apolitical law enforcement agency members, police stations, CCTV cameras, the judiciary, media personnel, innocent civilians, state institutions, hospitals, ambulances, fire service vehicles and public properties, according to Bangladesh’s reply to Türk. A member of the police was beaten to death while more than 100 police officers were injured, a bus worker was burnt alive, residences of the chief justice of Bangladesh and other judges of the Supreme Court were attacked, it said. Read: Economy buffeted by political unrest amid declining forex reserves: Analysts On the following days, as BNP spread the “campaign of arson and terror” all over Bangladesh, a few more people were killed, reads the letter. “It is unfortunate that BNP unleashed its attacks on the on-duty media personnel. TV cameras were snatched away and at least 25 journalists were attacked, several of whom were admitted to hospitals. Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) condemned these attacks by the BNP activists,” according to Bangladesh’s response.  In the letter, Bangladesh said Türk’s office should conduct an unbiased assessment of BNP’s targeted attacks on the press impeding freedom of expression. “Let me reassure you that our law enforcement agencies (LEAs) are well-trained to apply minimal and optimal force as they seek to prevent destruction of property or lives. Our LEAs deserve appreciation for being reasonable and restrained despite a member of the Police being mercilessly beaten to death by BNP hoodlums,” reads the letter. The current government, as a democratically elected one, is committed to uphold the rule of law and ensure peace and security, it said. Every single arrest made following the incident of October 28, was based on specific allegations against the persons concerned, Bangladesh said. “There has been no arbitrary arrest and detention, and we assure them access to full legal recourse as allowed under domestic laws,” the letter said. Read: Uncertainty, tension grip students, parents amid raging political crisis In its reply, Bangladesh also mentioned that BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia was convicted on corruption charges in two cases while a few other cases are ongoing – all of which were filed during the 2007-08 caretaker administration. Considering her health condition, based on the application of her family members, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina suspended her sentence under legal provision. “Begum Khaleda Zia was offered a release for a period of six months on conditions of (a) taking treatment in Bangladesh and (b) not leaving the country. She accepted the conditions under which she was released on 25 March 2020 and her release tenure was extended several times,” said the government of Bangladesh. Bangladesh in its reply mentioned that she has been receiving treatment of the highest standard at the Evercare Hospital, one of the best hospitals in Bangladesh, as per her choice. Recently, her family members and the leadership of BNP sought permission from the government to bring specialist doctors from the USA for her treatment. The government accorded its permission. Bangladesh appreciated engagement of Türk’s office with the government of Bangladesh on the recent developments. “As Bangladesh is constructively and consistently engaged with the UN mechanisms in promoting and protecting human rights, we expect our steadfast commitment would be reciprocated with the spirit of cooperation and proportionality,” reads the letter to the UN rights chief. Read EC to announce polls schedule in a couple of days: PM Hasina