Four air force members among scores injured
A 32-year-old man was killed and scores, including four Bangladesh Air Force personnel, were injured in a clash between locals and the BAF members reportedly over the construction of an airbase on Khas land in the Samitipara area in Cox鈥檚 Bazar on Monday.
The deceased is Shihab Kabir Nahid, son of Nasir Uddin of the Mandalpara area under Ramu upazila in the district. His family has been living in the Samitipara area for the past 20 years.
The district administration said that the man received a bullet and died while undergoing treatment at the Cox鈥檚 Bazar General Hospital.
鈥業 came to know about the death of a man from the hospital authorities,鈥� Cox鈥檚 Bazar deputy commissioner Mohammad Salahuddin told 抖阴精品.聽
The Inter Services Public Relation Directorate in a press release claimed that they opened blank fires that were not lethal. It only created sound.
ISPR expressed condolence over the death of Shihab.
The ISPR release also said that four Air Force members, including an officer, were injured in the attack launched by around 200 local people as a vested quarter instigated them.
The attackers threw brickbats targeting Air Force members at the airbase, it added.
The clash began at about 10:00am, about an hour after a lawyer namely Jahedul Islam was reportedly picked聽 up by Air Force personnel, taken to the airbase, and beaten for protesting at the construction of the airbase in the Samiti Para area by evicting people from Khas land, according to the local people.
They said that several hundred people went to the airbase demanding the lawyer鈥檚 release.
鈥楾he Air Force has been looking forward to constructing an air base in the khas land at Samitipara for the past one and a half years. The Air Force authority had already evicted many people from the land and trying to evict others,鈥� Aydatul Arna of Samitipara told 抖阴精品.
She said that the lawyer who had been protesting against the eviction was picked up by the Air Force personnel in the morning.
鈥楾he Air Force personnel had beaten the lawyer, and he was later admitted to Cox鈥檚 Bazar General Hospital,鈥� said Aydatul.
Another man in the area, preferring anonymity, said that Jahedul was beaten mercilessly and the lawyer was now undergoing treatment at the hospital.
Locals said that over 50 people were injured in the clash.
ISPR in the press release, referring to the Bangladesh Air Force, said that local 鈥榤iscreants鈥� attacked the air force base in Cox鈥檚 Bazar suddenly after the members of the force had stopped a motorcyclist at a checkpoint outside the base.
It said that they took the motorcyclist inside the base for questioning as he did not have valid documents.