Bangladesh | Country on high alert after 2 opposition leaders executed

Bangladeshi activists campaigning for capital punishment for war criminals march in a rally, as they celebrate the execution of two opposition leaders in Dhaka

Bangladesh was on high alert yesterday after executing two opposition leaders for war crimes during the country’s 1971 independence war, despite threats of violence by their supporters and international concerns that the legal proceedings were flawed.
A reporter was shot and wounded Sunday after covering the funeral of one of the men, though it was not clear who was responsible.
Yesterday, paramilitary border guards and thousands of other security officials were patrolling cities including the capital, Dhaka, in an effort to prevent any violence as the South Asian country’s main Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, called for a nationwide strike.
The party is protesting the hanging Sunday of its general secretary, Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid, and Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury.
Mujahid had been found guilty on charges of genocide, conspiracy in killing intellectuals, torture and abduction during the South Asian nation’s independence war against Pakistan, while Chowdhury was convicted on charges of torture, rape and genocide.
Authorities did not expect many to follow the call to strike, given that Jamaat-e-Islami has only about 3 percent of the country’s vote. Nevertheless, authorities were being cautious after a spate of killings claimed by Islamist extremists this year, including the murders of four secular bloggers, a publisher and two foreigners since February.
While there has been concern over the legal process that led to the executions, most leading Bangladeshi newspapers and TV stations supported the hangings.
The leading English-language Daily Star in one story detailed the atrocities for which Chowdhury was convicted. A second story narrated how minority Hindus had been brutally attacked and killed and their homes torched under Chowdhury’s leadership.
Two top Bangla-language dailies, Samakal and Prothom Alo, also published reports demonstrating support for the trials and executions.
In a statement late Sunday, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said the men’s trials had been flawed, and that “Pakistan is deeply disturbed” by the executions. AP