After the army commando raid at the restaurant, at least 27 people, including rescued hostages, were taken to the Detective Branch (DB) office.
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The gunmen also murdered two Bangladeshi police officers in the early hour of the attack.
Hundreds of relatives and friends of the victims and people from all walks of life also poured in to pay their last tribute at scene.
People crowd St.Peter’s Square at the Vatican as Pope Francis delivers his blessing from the window of his studio, Sunday, July 3, 2016.
A coffin bearing the body of a Bangladeshi victim of the attack on Holey Artisan Bakery, draped in national flag, is brought in for a ceremony for people to pay their tribute, at a stadium in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, July 4, 2016.
Police on Saturday night released the photos of the five militants and identified them as “Akash”, “Bikash”, “Don”, “Bandhon” and “Ripon”.
The plan is to look for family members of the gunmen, conduct DNA tests and investigate their links to worldwide groups, authorities said.
The charges against the suspects were filed at Gulshan Police Station at midnight, Inspector General of Police (IGP) AKM Shahidul Haque said. But the home minister insisted IS could not have guided the attack from overseas, as he said it has no presence in Bangladesh. “They are from rich families, they have good educational background”, Mr Khan said of the attackers.
This incident of children from the country’s upper classes joining the militant Islamists in such an act of brutality highlighted the fact that the radicalisation among the largely moderate Muslim population in Bangladesh has increased in recent years.
Italian media said several of the Italians victims worked in the garment industry, and the attack will frighten expatriates working in the $26 billion garment sector that accounts for 80 percent of its exports.
“We will also be exchanging information and interacting with our Indian counterparts and also with other friends overseas and then only we can come to a substantive conclusion”, he said.
Hasina’s government has previously blamed a string of deadly attacks against religious minorities and foreigners on domestic opponents but the latest will heighten fears that IS’s reach is spreading.
Two police officers and 20 hostages – nine Italians, seven Japanese, an Indian and three students at American universities – were killed.
Thirty-five hostages were taken, six attackers were killed and one person arrested. There was no information on their conditions.
It also said 20 hostages were found dead on the premises.
That the attackers targeted a popular restaurant in the heart of the diplomatic quarter of Bangladesh’s capital signaled a shift in militant tactics.
The hostages were asked to recite verses from the Quran, to prove themselves Muslim, according to a witness. Those who passed were allowed to eat but those who failed were tortured and killed. The assault on the restaurant in Dhaka’s diplomatic zone b.
The US Embassy also urged its citizens and personnel to avoid travelling on foot, motorcycle, bicycle, rickshaws or other uncovered vehicles where attackers might be able to reach them. Some of the killings have been claimed by militants purporting to be part of IS, while the responsibility for others has been assumed by the Ansarullah Bangla Team and JMB, both affiliates of al-Qaeda. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article.
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