A case has been filed against several unnamed assailants over the gunning down of an Italian national at the heart of Dhaka’s diplomatic enclave.
Published : 29 Sep 2015, 12:18 PM
NGO official Cesare Tavella, aged around 50, was shot dead on Monday evening at Gulshan-2’s Road 90 amid the UK and Australia’s security concerns.
One of the witnesses, rickshaw mechanic Md Joynal said he saw three assailants fleeing on a motorcycle. One of them was wielding a gun.
Jihadist threat monitoring portal SITE Intelligence Group later on Monday night said the Islamic State had claimed responsibility for the murder.
This would be the first attack in Bangladesh by the Islamist militant group that has seized large swathes of territory in eastern Syria and across northern and western Iraq.
The murder of the Italian national took place two days after the Australian cricket team decided to delay its tour to Bangladesh after their government warned of possible militant attacks on ‘Australian interests’.
After Australia, the UK and the US both claimed to have received information that militants might target their interests in Bangladesh and advised their citizens to limit their movements in the country.