Bangladesh's 1971 war crimes 'mastermind' arrested

Ghulam Azam, 89, a former head of opposition Jamaat-e-Islami party, arrested on charges of war crimes.


Afp January 11, 2012

DHAKA: Bangladesh on Wednesday arrested an Islamic leader on charges of war crimes during the country's 1971 liberation struggle, lawyers said.

Ghulam Azam, 89, a former head of opposition Jamaat-e-Islami party, has been accused of creating and leading pro-Pakistan militias which carried out many murders and rapes during the nine-month war.

"He has been arrested after the International Crimes Tribunal rejected his (anticipatory) bail petition," state prosecutor Syed Haider Ali told AFP. "He was the mastermind of all crimes against humanity during 1971."

Azam is the sixth and the most high profile Islamic leader to have been arrested since the nation's secular government set up the tribunal in 2010 to try suspects.

Two senior members from the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party are also facing war crime charges.

Both parties have dismissed the court as a government "show trial", while the New York-based group Human Rights Watch has said legal procedures used by the tribunal fall short of international standards.

Azam's lawyer Abdur Razzak slammed the arrest, which came after he was called to the tribunal.

"We don't know yet the charges against him, the order was not correct. He is also very old. Still, our bail petition was rejected," said Razzak.

Muslim-majority Bangladesh, which was called East Pakistan until 1971, has struggled to come to terms with its violent birth.

The current government says up to three million people were killed in the war, many murdered by locals collaborating with Pakistani forces.

COMMENTS (29)

Mohamed | 12 years ago | Reply

I beleive atrocities had been committed from both sides. But regarding Pak army things have been exaggerated.

Zzzz | 12 years ago | Reply

@Scorpio: Please write your accounts so this hidden truth comes out. If Pak is blamed for 3 million killed, the Muktis also killed 3 Lakh.

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