Foreigners’ massacre in Ramadan jolts Dhaka

The hostages were given a test: Recite verses from the Qur’an, or be punished, according to a witness. Those who passed were allowed to eat. Those who failed were tortured and slain.
The dramatic, 10-hour hostage crisis that gripped Bangladesh’s diplomatic zone ended Saturday morning with at least 28 dead, including six of the attackers, as commandos raided the popular restaurant where heavily armed attackers were holding dozens of foreigners and Bangladeshis prisoner while hurling bombs and engaging in a gunbattle with security forces. The victims included 20 hostages, mostly foreigners, and two Bangladeshi police officers.
Saudi Arabia strongly condemned the terror attack and offered condolences to the families of the victims and to the government and its people.
The attack marks an escalation in militant violence. Most previous attacks have involved machete-wielding men singling out individual activists, foreigners and religious minorities.
But Friday night’s attack was different, more coordinated, with the attackers brandishing assault rifles as they stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka’s Gulshan area while dozens of foreigners and Bangladeshis were dining out during the holy month.
The gunmen, initially firing blanks, ordered restaurant workers to switch off the lights, and they draped black cloths over closed-circuit cameras, according to a survivor, who spoke with local TV channel ATN News. He and others, including kitchen staff, managed to escape by running to the rooftop or out the back door.
But about 35 were trapped inside, their fate depending on whether they could prove themselves to be Muslims, according to the father of a Bangladeshi businessman who was rescued Saturday morning along with his family.
Authorities were also interrogating one of the attackers captured by commandos in dramatic morning rescue.
It was not clear whether the attackers had a specific goal, and Bangladesh authorities would not say if they had made any demands.
Eighteen-year-old Tarushi Jain, an Indian girl who was taken hostage, was among the dead. Among the dead are 9 Italians, seven Japanese and three Bangladeshis.
The commandos killed six of the attackers and recovered explosive devices and sharp weapons from the scene. They managed to rescue 13 hostages, including one Argentine, two Sri Lankans and two Bangladeshis.

Source: Arab News