Four people have been killed in separate shooting incidents across Bangladesh amid the ongoing crackdown on drugs.
The shootouts, reported from Dinajpur, Cox’s Bazar, Kushtia and Chapainawabganj, took place between Friday midnight and Saturday morning.
Police say one each in Dinapur and Cox’s Bazar died in gunfights between drug trafficking gangs while the two others in Kushtia and Chapainawabganj were killed during raids by law enforcers.
Nearly 200 people have been killed in alleged ‘crossfire’ since law-enforcement agencies began the anti-drug drive on May 18.
Law enforcers have reporting deaths in overnight ‘shootouts with drug dealers’ and ‘gunfight between drug trafficking gangs’ as they began the crackdown on the prime minister’s orders.
Rights bodies have voiced concerns over the killings, raising questions about the authenticity of the reports.
Police have claimed that all of the dead were involved in drug trafficking.
Bangla Tribune district correspondents report:
DINAJPUR
A man, identified as 45-year-old Abdur Rahim, was killed in the northern district’s Parbatipur Upazila in shooting between narcotic gangs, said police.
Parbatipur police OC Habibul Haque Pradhan said a shooting incident was reported around 3am on Saturday from Belaichandi area.
“The body of listed drug dealer Abdur Rahim was found on the spot. A loaded firearm, 100 Yaba tablets and 50 bottles of Phensedyl were found. Rahim was wanted on several narcotics charges,” he said.
COX’S BAZAR
Police in the southeastern coastal district have reported the death of 30-year-old Mohammad Ismail, who they claimed were killed in a gunfight between drug gangs in Chakoria Upazila.
“Around 4am, a shootout erupted near the Kumaria Bridge on the Chakoria-Lama Road. The drug dealers fled as soon as a police team reached the spot. The body of a man, later identified as Mohammad Ismail, was found on the spot. He was named in at least six narcotics case,” said Chakoria police OC Md Bakhtiar Uddin Chowdhury.
A firearm, two rounds of ammunition and over 450 yaba tablets were found at the crime scene, added the police officer.
CHAPAINAWABGANJ
An unidentified man, who the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) claimed to be a drug dealer, was killed in the wee hours of Saturday in what has been described as a shootout.
The local RAB-5 camp commander Abdullah Al Murad said a patrol team raided the Sundarpur area near the district town on a tip-off over a drug deal in progress.
“As soon as they arrived, the drug dealers opened fire, forcing the RAB team to retaliate. The drug dealers managed to flee, leaving one behind with gunshot injuries. He was taken to the local hospital, where he was declared dead,” he said.
RAB said they found a pistol, four rounds of ammunition and 117 bottles of Phensedyl from the scene.
KUSHTIA
Police in Kushtia have reported the death of one Shamsuddin alias Shyam during a ‘shootout’.
The 36-year-old, who police claim was one of top drug dealers, died in the alleged shootout in the district’s Bheramara Upazila.
“Police conducted a raid around 3am on Saturday in the Chardamukdia Bakapul on a tip off over a drug deal in progress. The drug dealers opened fire on police. Shyam was shot when police retaliated. He was taken to Bheramara Upazila hospital, where doctors said it was a dead on arrival case.”
A firearm, two rounds of ammunition and 500 yaba tablets were found at the spot, he said.