Bangladesh deploys troops as protest toll hits 76
04 March, 2013
DHAKA: Bangladesh deployed troops in part of the country after fresh clashes erupted on Sunday, taking the death toll to 76 in weeks of violence over the conviction of Islamist leaders for war crimes. Twenty people were killed in the latest bout of violence as the largest Islamic party Jamaat-e-Islami declared a nationwide strike to denounce the trials. In the northern district of Bogra more than 10,000 Jamaat supporters armed with sticks and home-made bombs attacked 12 police stations, torching four of them and two government offices, police said. "They came from the villages and attacked the stations at dawn. Nine people were killed in Bogra district including four who were killed in Shahjahanpur (town)," police Inspector Shamsul Haq told AFP. Troops have been deployed in Shahjahanpur to strengthen security, he said. Six people were shot dead in the northwestern town of Panchbibi after security officials opened fire at about 12,000 protesters, district chief Mohammad Yasin said. "The forces fired after they were besieged by the armed protesters for about two hours," he told AFP. End.
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