2004 Dhaka grenade attack
Encyclopedia
The 2004 Dhaka grenade attack was an attempt to kill Sheikh Hasina
, the then-former Prime Minister
of Bangladesh
, on August 21, 2004. The attack left at least 23 dead and injured many others, including Hasina.
Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina had been speaking at a rally protesting blasts against the party’s workers in Sylhet
. The rally drew a crowd of 15,000 people. As Hasina finished her speech, a total of 13 grenades were thrown into the crowd from the rooftops of nearby buildings, killing at least 23 people and injuring more than 200. Among the dead were Hasina’s bodyguard and Awami League Women's Affairs Secretary Ivy Rahman
.
The Awami League called for a massive hartal
the day after the attacks.
Harkat-ul Jihad al Islami
(HUJI) leader Mufti Abdul Hannan was arrested for the grenade attacks in 2007, and was later charged in connection with it. He reportedly confessed to the attacks in November 2007. He was sentenced to death in December 2008 for attempting to kill Anwar Choudhury
in 2004.
Sheikh Hasina
Sheikh Hasina is a Bangladeshi politician and current Prime Minister of Bangladesh. She has been the President of the Awami League, a major political party, since 1981. She is the eldest of five children of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father of Bangladesh and widow of a reputed nuclear...
, the then-former Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
of Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, on August 21, 2004. The attack left at least 23 dead and injured many others, including Hasina.
Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina had been speaking at a rally protesting blasts against the party’s workers in Sylhet
Sylhet
Sylhet , is a major city in north-eastern Bangladesh. It is the main city of Sylhet Division and Sylhet District, and was granted metropolitan city status in March 2009. Sylhet is located on the banks of the Surma Valley and is surrounded by the Jaintia, Khasi and Tripura hills...
. The rally drew a crowd of 15,000 people. As Hasina finished her speech, a total of 13 grenades were thrown into the crowd from the rooftops of nearby buildings, killing at least 23 people and injuring more than 200. Among the dead were Hasina’s bodyguard and Awami League Women's Affairs Secretary Ivy Rahman
Ivy Rahman
Ivy Rahman was a Bangladeshi politician. She was the Women's Affairs secretary of Awami League. She was killed in the 2004 Dhaka Grenade Attacks launched by Islamist terrorists....
.
The Awami League called for a massive hartal
Hartal
Hartal is a term in many Indian languages for strike action, used often during the Indian Independence Movement. It is mass protest often involving a total shutdown of workplaces, offices, shops, courts of law as a form of civil disobedience...
the day after the attacks.
Harkat-ul Jihad al Islami
Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami
Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami is an Islamic fundamentalist organization most active in South Asian countries of Pakistan, Bangladesh and India since the early 1990s. It was banned in Bangladesh in 2005. The operational commander of HuJI, Ilyas Kashmiri, was reportedly killed in a U.S. Predator drone...
(HUJI) leader Mufti Abdul Hannan was arrested for the grenade attacks in 2007, and was later charged in connection with it. He reportedly confessed to the attacks in November 2007. He was sentenced to death in December 2008 for attempting to kill Anwar Choudhury
Anwar Choudhury
Anwar Choudhury is the Director of International Institutions at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. He was a High Commissioner to Bangladesh, and was the first British Head of Mission to be of Bangladeshi origin...
in 2004.