Protester seeking shelter dragged out, shot dead in Mohammadpur during July Uprising: Witness tells ICT

A prosecution witness who took part in the July Uprising told International Crimes Tribunal-1 today that he saw a protester seeking shelter from gunfire in Dhaka’s Mohammadpur area being dragged out of a residential building and shot at close range by a police officer and an Ansar member.

The victim, later identified as Raju, was shot in the leg and abdomen and died from his injuries, said Md Mamun Farazi, the eighth prosecution witness in the crimes against humanity case against former DSCC mayor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh, former minister Jahangir Kabir Nanak and 26 others over the deaths of nine people in Mohammadpur during the July Uprising.

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On July 19, 2024, Farazi said, he joined protesters after Friday's Juma prayers near Allah Karim Mosque in Mohammadpur. Around 2:30pm, police, Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), Ansar and armed men affiliated with Awami League, Jubo League and Chhatra League opened repeated fire.

Farazi said Raju was shot in the leg and abdomen and that blood was coming out through the wound in his abdomen. Raju was taken to a hospital but died later that day, he said.

Farazi identified the Ansar member as Omar Faruk.

Later that afternoon, Farazi said, he saw another protester collapse after being shot. One bullet shattered two fingers on one hand, while another passed through his chest. Farazi said the victim’s blood soaked his clothes as he helped take him first to a pharmacy and later to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital.

He later learned that the man, identified as Jasim, died on July 29.

Farazi sought the maximum punishment for the accused.