19 militants killed in 3 raids
With Operation Hit Strong 27 under way, three militants, one of them the suspected mastermind of the Gulshan caf attack, Tamim Chowdhury, were killed yesterday. In three joint operations, law enforcers have so far killed 19 militants in two months. After the Gulshan caf attack, people were heard saying that there would be no peace in the country. They feared more such attacks. Fortunately, after the Sholakia Eidgah attack, this fear among the common people was gone, at least to some extent. The concept of militancy in the country changed suddenly with the attack on Holey Artisan Bakery in Gulshan on the 1st of July. The terrorists killed 20 hostagesnine Italians, seven Japanese, an Indian and three Bangladeshis. Two police officers also died trying to flush out the terrorists. The attack made people believe that some elements in the country have links with the IS, and that educated modern young men are getting involved in militancy. Operation Thunderbolt, a combined drive by the military and joint forces, killed all six attackers. On July 7, four peopletwo policemen, a woman and a suspected assailantdied in the attack near the Sholakia Eidgah, where hundreds of thousands had gathered for Eid congregation in the morning. This stunned the nation as to how militants could attack the faithful on Eid day. Operation Storm 26 on July 26 revealed the bravery of law enforcers. Nine militants were killed and another was detained with bullet injuries, as security forces overnight raided a terrorist hideout at a multi-storied residential building at Kalyanpur in the capital. The Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) force, along with members of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Detective Branch of the police and fire service men, took part in the operation.
