Funeral of 48 Bangladesh Army officers held

Dhaka, Mar 2 (ANI): The funeral or the Namaz-e-janaza of the 48 Bangladesh army officers, whose bodies were found during a rescue operation at the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) headquarters, was held at the National Parade Square on Monday.

Forty-two of them were laid to rest at about 1:00pm at the military graveyard at Banani with state honour while the bodies of eight others were sent to their village homes for burial.

Apart from DG of the BDR Major General Shakil Ahmed and his wife Nazneen, the 39 other slain army officers, out of 47, are Col Md Zakir Hossain, Col Mohammad Mashiur Rahman, Col Kudrat Elahi Rahman Shafiq, Col Mohammad Akhtar Hossain, Col Md Rezaul Kabir, Col Nafiz Uddin Ahmed, Col Kazi Emdadul Haq, Col Samsul Arefin Ahammed, Col Mohammad Nakibur Rahman, Col Kazi Moazzem Hossain, Col Md Shawkat Imam, Col Mohammad Emdadul Islam, Col Md Aftabul Islam, Lt Col Enshad Ibn Amin, Lt Col Shamsul Azam, Lt Col Md Badrul Huda and Lt Col Md Saiful Islam.

Other are Lt Col Md Lutfar Rahman, Lt Col Mohammad Sajjadur Rahman, Lt Col Kazi Rabi Rahman, Lt Col Lutfar Rahman Khan, Maj Md Makbul Hossain, Maj Md Abdus Salam Khan, Maj Hossain Sohel Shahnewaj, Maj Kazi Mosaddek Hossain, Major Md Saleh, Maj Mahmud Hasan, Maj Mustak Mahmud, Maj Mahmudul Hasan, Maj Humayun Haider, Maj Md Azharul Islam, Maj Md Humayun Kabir Sarkar, Maj Md Khalid Hossain, Maj Mohammad Maksum-ul-Hakim, Maj Syed Md Idris Iqbal, Maj Md Rafiqul Islam, Maj Muhammad Mosharaf Hossain, Maj Mohammad Mominul Islam Sarkar, Maj Mostafa Asaduzzaman and Maj S M Mamunur Rahman.

Besides relatives of the slain officers, President Zillur Rahman, several ministers, chiefs of three services, lawmakers, political leaders, military officials and civilians attended the funeral ceremony.

The President placed floral wreath at the coffins with due military fashion. The chiefs of army, navy and air force followed the President.

The military secretary to the Prime Minister placed the wreath on behalf of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Air Force jets offered flying salute to the coffins.

Meanwhile, Army, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Police have begun 'Operation Rebel Hunt' from this morning. to arrest the absconding rebels of the BDR.

Earlier in the day, the United States reassured the government of providing assistance for investigating the Dhaka mutiny.

The reassurance came when the US Ambassador in Dhaka James F Moriarty called on Foreign Minister Dipu Moni at her office.

Talking to reporters, Moni said Hasina has already made formal request to US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard A Boucher for sending Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) to Bangladesh to investigate the killings.

She also said she had asked the UK envoy for sending Scotland Yard to Bangladesh, the Daily Star reports. (ANI)