The country’s leading media outlet, Prothom Alo has fallen victim to a targeted and organised terrorist attack. At the same time, office of the leading English newspaper The Daily Star was attacked as well.
Late on Thursday night, assailants carried out vandalism and looting at Prothom Alo’s office in Karwan Bazar and at The Daily Star’s office on Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue. The attackers subsequently set fire to both premises.
As the attack began, journalists and staff of Prothom Alo quickly evacuated the office to save their lives. Due to the disruption caused by the attack, Prothom Alo could not be published on Friday (19 December).
For the first time in its 27 year history, apart from newspaper holidays, Prothom Alo’s publication was suspended for a full day. Its online edition remained offline for nearly 17 hours.
Outside Dhaka, Prothom Alo offices in Kushtia, Khulna and Sylhet were attacked and vandalised. Attempts were made to attack its offices in Chattogram, Bogura and Barishal as well.
The Daily Star was also unable to publish its print edition and its online operations remained suspended for an extended period. According to The Daily Star authorities, this was the first time in its 33 year history, excluding newspaper holidays that publication had been halted.
During the attack, 28 journalists and staff members of The Daily Star were trapped on the rooftop.
In addition to Prothom Alo and The Daily Star, attacks were carried out on various establishments in different locations in and outside Dhaka.
Following the attacks, the chief adviser of the interim government, Professor Muhammad Yunus on Friday spoke to Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman and The Daily Star editor Mahfuz Anam over phone.
In a statement issued by the chief adviser’s press wing, he expressed his deep sympathy to both editors and said, “This unwanted and barbaric attack on your institutions and journalists has deeply shocked me. In this difficult time, the government stands beside you.”
The horrific attacks on Prothom Alo and The Daily Star have been prominently reported by international media outlets including the BBC, Reuters, AFP, AP and Al Jazeera.
Various political parties, among them the BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), Ganosamhati Andolon and AB Party have condemned and protested against the attacks.
The Media Freedom Coalition in Bangladesh (MFC) comprising the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Canada, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland, as well as the editors council, the Newspaper Owners Association of Bangladesh (NOAB), Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), the National Press Club, journalists unions and other journalists organisations have all condemned the attacks.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a global organisation defending journalists rights, has also expressed concern.
Prothom Alo authorities have stated that there are reasonable grounds to believe that a vested group deliberately orchestrated these attacks by exploiting the tragic killing of Sharif Osman Hadi, convener of the Inqilab Moncho, who was at the forefront of the July mass uprising.
This was a black day for independent journalism. Through this incident, not only was there an attempt to derail the forthcoming election, but there was also a clear objective to severely damage Bangladesh’s image in the international arena.
Sharif Osman Hadi was shot on 12 December in Purana Paltan area of Dhaka. He succumbed to his injuries on Thursday night while undergoing treatment in Singapore.
The principal accused in the shooting is Faisal Karim, a former leader of Chhatra League, the organisation whose activities are now banned. According to police sources, he has fled to India.
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