US condemns attack on Hindu priest, lauds Bangladesh’s counter-terrorism efforts

The United States has condemned in the “strongest possible terms” the attack on a Hindu priest in a northern Bangladesh district.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 23 Feb 2016, 01:17 PM
Updated : 23 Feb 2016, 01:17 PM

Ambassador Marcia Bernicat in a statement says Washington supports the government’s “efforts to identify the perpetrators of this and all extremist attacks”.
 
She said those were “cowardly acts” and that the assailants targeted “members of a community with historic roots in Bangladesh and that strikes at Bangladesh’s traditions of diversity and harmony”.
 
Priest Jagneshwar Roy was murdered on Sunday in a Panchagarh village. Gopal Chandra Roy also came under attack while trying to save the priest.
 
Radical outfit Islamic State is said to have claimed responsibility for the murder on Sunday. Police said they had arrested three people over the killing.
 
The ambassador said the Bangladesh government’s commitment to rooting out militancy was demonstrated by the recent arrest of suspects involved in these incidents.
 
She said the commitment was also showed by the counter-terrorism raid in Dhaka, which led to the seizure of bombs and bomb-making materials.