The International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Sunday issued arrest warrants against 24 Awami League leaders and four police senior officers over the killing of nine protesters in the capital’s Mohammadpur area during the July 2024 mass uprising.
The three-member tribunal, headed by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder, directed the inspector general of police to execute the warrants by January 29.
The order followed the submission of formal charges against 28 accused by chief prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam.
The key accused in the case include former Dhaka South City Corporation mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh, who is also first cousin of deposed prime minster Sheikh Hasina, Awami League senior leader Jahangir Kabir Nanak, along with several party leaders and activists.
According to the chief prosecutor, a captured conversation between Sheikh Hasina and Dhaka South City Corporation mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh, revealed that Hasina ordered Taposh to locate protesters in Mohammadpur using drones and fire on them from helicopters with ‘lethal weapons.’
Four senior police officers have also been charged. They are the then Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner Habibur Rahman, additional deputy inspector general Proloy Kumar Zoarder, DMP
joint commissioner (operations) Bilob Kumar Sarkar, and Mohammadpur zone ADC Rowsanul Hoque Soikat.
Of the accused, detained Omar Faruk Anchar, Naimur Rahman Rassel, KM Fazle Rabbi, and Sazzad Hossain were produced before the tribunal.
According to the prosecution, the accused, acting on instructions from Jahangir Kabir Nanak, opened fire indiscriminately on a peaceful rally of unarmed protesters in the Mohammadpur area on July 18, 2024.
The first charge against them states that the attackers killed Dhaka Residential Model College Class XI student Mohammad Farhanul Islam Bhuiyan at Dhanmondi 27 at about 2:30pm. Two others—Sadid Rahman Sani and Fathin Mahtadi Tawki—were hacked and beaten.
The second charge alleges that the police, armed with Chinese rifles, shotguns, tear gas, and sound grenades, took positions at Noorjahan Road, Mohammadpur bus stand, and Bachhila-bound road, where Md Mahin Mia and Md Robin were shot dead and many others were injured.
According to the third charge, six more people were killed and eight others injured in separate shootings on July 18, 2024 and July 19, 2024.
Among the dead were hawker Al Shahriar Hossain Rokan, courier service worker Md Razu Ahmed, and HSC examinee Mahmudur Rahman Saikat, who were shot near Moyur Villa and Mohammadpur Model College at the night of July 19, 2024.
The tribunal will review the progress of arrests on January 29.
Twenty others accused include Omar Faruk, Sheikh Bazlur Rahman, Azizul Hoque Rana, MA Sattar, Md Tofail Siddique Tuhin, Md Ismail Hossain, Asif Ahmed, Syed Hasan-nur-Islam Rastan, Tariquzzaman Rajib, Md Masudur Rahman Biplob, Zahir Uddin Ahmed (Bichhu Jalal), Riaz Mahmud Hridoy, Naimul Hasan Rassel, Md Sazzad Hossain, Ayman Waseq (Amik), Ahad Hossain Sohaq, AKM Fazle Rabbi Mithun, Md Yunus, Md Sentu (Nur Mohammad Sentu), Mohammad Mainul Islam (Palash), and Md Rubel Hossain (Molla Rubel).
The prosecutors said that all the accused were linked to the Awami League and its affiliated organisations.
