War Crimes in Faridpur
Mojaheed took part in torching Hindu houses
Says witness
Jamaat-e-Islami leader Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed along with non-Bangalee Biharies and Pakistani army had taken part in torching several Hindu-dominated villages in Faridpur during the Liberation War, a prosecution witness testified yesterday.
“Fifteen to twenty people of these villages were also killed,†Faijuddin Ahmed, the eleventh prosecution witnesses against Mojaheed, told International Crimes Tribunal-2.
“Mojaheed was known to me. On that day, we [he and Mojaheed] exchanged Salam [greetings],†said the 80-year-old witness from Faridpur.
Earlier, the sixth prosecution witness, Abdul Malek Mia, testified that Mojaheed was involved in the mass killing in four Hindu-dominated villages in Faridpur during the war.
The three-member tribunal led by Justice Obaidul Hassan recorded Faijuddin's testimony before adjourning the proceeding till today, when the latter will face cross-examination.
Faijuddin, from Charhariram of Char Bhadrasan in Faridpur, was a compounder at a government dispensary in 1971.
He said his neighbouring villages--Bhangidangi, Baidyadangi, Majhidangi, Baladangi, and Bashtala--were Hindu dominated, and one Friday, he saw the villages burning.
“They came, torching house after house. They were Biharis, Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed, Hammam Moulana, and some other members of the Peace Committee [an anti-liberation force],†he said.
Pakistani army killed Hindu people trying to flee the villages, said Faijuddin, adding that many bodies were buried under his [Faijuddin's] supervision.
He said Al-Badr, Razakar, two other anti-liberation forces, and Pakistani army jointly committed atrocities in Faridpur during the war, and the evidence of their atrocities were still available.
“Hindus were the worst affected,†he said.
Mojaheed faces seven charges, including murder, genocide, and a conspiracy to kill intellectuals during the war.
Meanwhile, the prosecution yesterday continued to place arguments against another war crimes accused, Jamaat leader Abdul Quader Mollah, for the fourth day.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
Comments