Rathore urges media not to reveal identities of hostages in Dhaka attack

Dhaka/New Delhi, July 2: In the wake of suspected terrorists taking a number of people including foreigners hostage in a popular Dhaka restaurant, Union Minister of state for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore on Friday urged media to not reveal the identities of hostages.

"Media should refrain from identifying nationalities/identities of probable hostages in context of #Dhaka for their safety," Rathore said in a tweet.

Suspected terrorists on Friday night stormed a popular restaurant in Dhaka's high-security Gulshan diplomatic area and took hostage at least 20 people including foreigners, triggering a fierce gun battle with Bangladesh security forces in which two policemen were killed and nearly 30 injured.

At least nine terrorists shouting "Allahu Akbar" barged into the Holey Artisan Bakery, frequented by diplomats and expatriates, and opened indiscriminate fire at around 9:20 PM (local time).

Several foreigners, were feared to have been taken hostage along with locals inside the restaurant, said police.

PTI