Bangladesh railway blasts signed 'al Qaeda'
May 1, 2007
DHAKA, Bangladesh (Reuters) -- Three simultaneous bomb blasts rocked separate railway terminals in Bangladesh on Tuesday, with militant slogans claiming to be from al Qaeda found at two of the sites.
One man was hurt in the blasts, which triggered panic among commuters, who evacuated railway terminals.
Thin metal sheets scribbled with slogans were found at the bomb sites in Dhaka's Kamalapur and Sylhet terminals. The third blast was in the railway terminal of the southeastern city of Chittagong.
"... If Hazrat (Prophet) Mohammad is not declared the superman of the world by May 10, all non-governmental organizations will be blown up," the slogans on the metal sheets read in the Bengali language. They were signed "the al Qaeda network" in English.
"The bombs were kept in cotton sacks, along with the metal sheets. They exploded before anyone detected them," said police Inspector Abu Zafar Alam at Kamalapur, Bangladesh's biggest railway terminal.
"We are puzzled over the motives (of those who planted the bombs). But they dared to take the risk," said another police officer.
No one has been arrested, nor could police immediately confirm any al Qaeda link to the blasts.
Police said Munir Hossain, a rickshaw-puller, was injured at the Chittagong terminal when he tried to open one of the sacks before it exploded.
Outlawed Islamist groups
The outlawed Islamist group, Jamaat-ul-Mujahedeen, carried out a series of bomb blasts across Bangladesh on August 17, 2005, killing three people and injuring more than 100.
In more attacks through the rest of 2005, the Jamaat-ul-Mujahedeen and another outlawed group, Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh, killed nearly 30 more people and wounded 150, including judges, lawyers, police and officials.
Six leaders from the two groups were executed on March 30 for their role in the blasts.
Many commuters fled the terminals, too scared to board trains.
"I am afraid to take on the journey. There may be more bombs around," said Didarul Alam, a bank official waiting to board a train to Chittagong. "They have spoiled my holiday."
Many Bangladeshis were traveling out of Dhaka taking advantage of a two-day public holiday for May Day and a Buddhist religious festival on Wednesday.
Security has been tightened across the country, police said.
Intelligence groups last month alerted the government that Islamist militants were regrouping after the execution of the militant leaders.
"This (Tuesday's blasts) proved they are still active and dared to show their teeth," said one security official who asked not to be named.
The army-backed interim government has imposed a state of emergency in January following deadly political violence that forced the authorities to suspend a scheduled national election.
Tuesday's blasts occurred almost simultaneously around 7:30 a.m. (0130 GMT), police said.
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