Published : 22 Jul 2025, 08:49 AM
Updated : 21 Aug 2026, 01:33 PM
Authorities have released the bodies of eight victims of the Bangladesh Air Force jet crash at Milestone School and College in Dhaka’s Diabari, handing them to relatives without post-mortem examinations.
On Monday night, Turag Police Station’s investigation officer Nuruzzaman said the bodies were of “five girls, two boys, and a guardian”.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Directorate later issued a statement naming the eight victims: Fatema Akhter, 9, Samiul Karim, 9, Mehnaz Afrin Huraira, 9, Sharia Akhter, 13, Nusrat Jahan Anika, 10, Saad Salauddin, 9, Sayma Akhter, 9, and Rajoni Islam, 37.
Uttara Deputy Commissioner Mohidul Islam said, “If the families request the bodies without postmortem, we release them after completing the inquest formalities.”
The crash occurred earlier in the day when a Bangladesh Air Force F-7BGI fighter jet went down on top of a two-storey school building. At the time, classes for children were in session.
After rescue operations concluded, the Fire Service said 19 bodies had been recovered. Later in the evening, the ISPR raised the death toll to 20, including the pilot.
The Chief Advisor’s Special Assistant for health ministry Md Sayedur Rahman, however, cited a slightly lower figure of 17 deaths, noting that it would take time to “coordinate the final count”.
Inspector Nuruzzaman confirmed that after the handover of the eight bodies, nine more bodies, including that of Flight Lieutenant Towkir Islam, remained at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH).
“Except for the pilot, the remaining bodies are severely burned and cannot be identified visually,” he said. “Without DNA testing, it’s difficult to confirm whether they were students or others.”
Although 20 deaths have been reported, Nuruzzaman could not provide immediate information on the whereabouts of the remaining three bodies.
