A special tribunal in Dhaka will deliver its verdict today (Wednesday) in the case filed over the gruesome militant attack on Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka’s Gulshan locality on July 1, 2016, which killed 22, including 17 foreigners. After completion of arguments from the prosecution and the defence, Judge Md Majibur Rahman of the Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal of Dhaka on November 17 fixed November 27 (today) for delivering the verdict in the case. During closing arguments, the prosecution told the tribunal that they were able to prove the charges against the eight and sought capital punishment for all of them. The defence sought acquittals for their clients, saying the charges were brought based on the confessional statements of the six accused, which could not be trusted.

The trial in the Holey Artisan Bakery terror attack case began on November 26 last year after Humayun Kabir, an inspector of the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime Unit of the police and the investigating officer of the case, pressed charges against eight neo-JMB militants on July 23 the same year in the café massacre case. The tribunal framed charges against eight accused under Sections 2, 6, 8, 9, 12 and 20 of the Anti-Terrorism Act. The court also fixed December 3, 2018 for starting to record the deposition of witnesses in the case.

Six of the accused, who are currently in jail, pleaded not guilty after facing the charges. The eight accused are: Jahangir Alam alias Rajib Gandhi, Rakibul Hasan Regan, Rashedul Islam alias Rash, Sohel Mahfuz, Mizanur Rahman alias Baro Mizan, Hadisur Rahman Sagar, Shariful Islam Khaled and Mamunur Rashid Ripon. Among them, Shariful Islam Khaled and Mamunur Rashid Ripon are on the run.  On July 1, 2016, five heavily armed militants carrying crude bombs, machetes, pistols and assault rifles attacked Holey Artisan Bakery, an upscale restaurant in Gulshan, and took several dozen hostages. The militants killed 22 people—nine Italians, seven Japanese, three Bangladeshis and one Indian, all restaurant guests, and two police officers. Two bakery staffers also succumbed to injuries later. All the five assailants—Nibras Islam, Rohan Imtiaz, Meer Saameh Mubasheer, Khairul Islam and Shafiqul Islam—were killed in an army commando raid the next morning while the hostages were freed unharmed.