Bangladesh to investigate 2009 mutiny massacre – World

Bangladesh on Thursday ordered a commission to investigate a failed 2009 military mutiny and its subsequent crackdown, including the role of alleged “foreign” sponsors, the head of the inquiry said.

The violent riot shocked the entire South Asian nation and ended with the army crushing the mutineers, with dozens detained and sentenced to death.

An earlier official investigation into the mutiny that left dozens dead placed blame on years of pent-up anger among ordinary soldiers, who felt their calls for pay rises and better treatment were ignored.

But that investigation took place during the tenure of Sheikh Hasina, who was ousted as prime minister by a revolution in August when she fled to her former ally India.

Since his fall, families of soldiers killed in the violence have been campaigning to reopen the investigation.

They have repeatedly accused Hasina, then newly elected, of orchestrating a plot to weaken the military and bolster her own power in a coup-prone country.

Protesters have also alleged India’s involvement in that plot.

The claims are likely to anger New Delhi, which did not immediately respond to the allegations.

“Our aim is to determine whether any foreign entity was involved in the massacre as allegations of domestic and international conspiracy have been raised,” commission head ALM Fazlur Rahman told reporters.

The mutineers stole thousands of weapons in February 2009 from the headquarters of the paramilitary squad Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) before embarking on a killing spree at the headquarters.

The uprising spread quickly, and thousands of soldiers took up arms and swore allegiance to the mutineers before it was put down by the army.

Thousands of people were detained and tried in special military courts after the massacre, as Hasina’s then-newly elected government struggled to regain control.

Hundreds of soldiers were sentenced to sentences ranging from death to a few years in prison, and the United Nations criticized the process for failing to meet basic standards.

Hasina’s iron-fisted government was backed by New Delhi, and the 77-year-old remains in India, aggravating relations between the nations.

On Monday, Dhaka said it had asked India to send Hasina back to face charges of “massacres, murders and crimes against humanity.”



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