Five people have been killed in clashes and gunfire between two rival groups over control and dominance related to the grabbing of a char in Hatiya, an island upazila of Noakhali.
At least 10 others were injured in the incident, which took place on Tuesday morning on Jaglar Char, adjacent to wards 7 and 8 of Sukhchar union in the upazila.
Police have confirmed the name of one of the deceased as Alauddin. The identities of the others have not yet been confirmed. Alauddin was taken to the 250-bed Noakhali General Hospital in the afternoon, where the on-duty physician declared him dead. The bodies of the remaining four victims were reportedly lying on Jaglar Char until the evening. Police are present at the scene to recover the bodies.
According to police and local residents, a long-standing dispute had existed between the local Kopa Shamsu alias Shamsuddin group and the Alauddin group over the possession of government-owned land on Jaglar Char, which recently emerged in the Meghna river in Hatiya. In recent times, there had been several retaliatory attacks between the two sides. Most recently, on Tuesday morning, the two groups engaged in repeated clashes and exchanges of gunfire over control of the char land, resulting in casualties on both sides. Police said that by afternoon they had confirmed the deaths of five people, including the leaders of both groups.
However, another local source claimed that the death toll was six. Local residents said that river routes are the main means of access to the area, which is why the incident, despite occurring in the morning, became known only after noon. Upon receiving the information, police from Hatiya police station and members of the Coast Guard reached the scene around 4:30pm. As of evening, police had not been able to recover the bodies.
Officer in charge of Hatiya police station, Md Saiful Alam, told Prothom Alo that clashes and gunfire took place between two local groups over the occupation of land on Jaglar Char, leaving at least five people dead. Several others were also injured. Efforts are underway to collect the identities of the deceased and injured, and legal action will be taken based on complaints.
Hatiya Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Md Alauddin also confirmed the deaths of five people, adding that one more person is in critical condition.