Not the time to fight: BNP asks Bangladesh government to create national unity against terrorism

The BNP has asked the government to rise above petty issues and create a national unity against the threat posed by militants.

A terror attack and the consequent nightlong siege by gunmen of Gulshan’s Holey Bakery and O’ Kitchen on Friday left 20 hostages dead inside the upscale eatery.

Two police officers died in the first hours of the response by the security forces.

“The people are not well. This is not the time to accuse each other,” said BNP Secretary General Fakhrul Islam Alamgir in a press conference at the party’s Naya Paltan offices on Tuesday.

He announced that the BNP will hold programmes on Jul 12 to mourn the victims of the attack.

The country was in shock over the deadly attack at the heart of Dhaka’s diplomatic zone, he said.

“We were hoping the government would listen to our Chairperson Khaleda Zia who asked for national unity in the wake of this crisis.

“But unfortunately they have rejected her call and some government ministers are throwing conditions our way, misinterpreting her message.”

Fakhrul said there were no reasons for such a reaction. The nation will have to unite under the ideals of Bangladesh’s liberation. 

The ruling Awami League will have to be at the helm of all these measures, he said.

“There are accountable for everything that is happening now. They’ll have to bear the responsibility for the lives lost. Their failures have led to this massacre.”