Death toll climbs as Bangladesh expands anti-drug crackdown

Eleven more people have died overnight in what law-enforcement agencies described as shootouts as Bangladesh expanded its anti-drug crackdown.

Law-enforcement agencies said they engaged in gun battles with drug traffickers in nine districts overnight on Monday.

At least four persons—two each in Cumilla and Nilphamari—have been shot dead by the police while one person died in Chuadanga Netrokona and Dinajpur each. Four men were killed in RAB shootouts in Chattogram, Feni, Narayanganj and Brahmanbaria.

The Rapid Action Battalion and police said all of the deceased were involved in drug trafficking, with some of them named in multiple narcotics cases.

At least 26 people have been killed in ‘shootouts’ by law-enforcement agencies throughout the country over the last four days.

Although they disapprove the prevalence of drug in the country, rights organisations expressed their anxiety over the killings and the way the law-enforcement agencies are combating drug trafficking. They demanded an end to these extrajudicial killings.

The agencies have been providing almost similar descriptions of all incidents saying the drug traffickers attack them during raids and get killed only when law-enforcement agents retaliate in self-defence.

However, families of some of the deceased complained they were picked up and killed.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina declared a war on drugs during an event in Sunday saying the government has begun a special drive to make the country ‘drug free’ and RAB has been given the main responsibility for it.

Also, the Detective Branch of Police, Railway Police, Police and Border Guard Bangladesh are also seen conducting a crackdown on drug trafficking.