Bangladesh police say nine militants killed in Dhaka raid

NEW DELHI – Police in Bangladesh’s capital raided a five-story building Tuesday and killed nine suspected Islamic militants, the country’s police chief said.

Inspector General of Police A.K.M. Shahidul Hoque said the raid took place in Dhaka’s Kalyanpur area and one suspect was arrested and he was being treated with injuries in a hospital.

Hoque said officials were still investigating to see which group the men belonged to, but their clothing and other evidence showed it was likely that they belonged to local banned group Jumatul Mujahedeen Bangladesh, or JMB. The group is blamed for a July 1 attack in Dhaka’s Gulshan diplomatic area, when 20 people, including Italians and Japanese, were killed when armed gunmen attacked a restaurant.

Hoque said the suspected militants were killed when police raided the building used as a den by the suspected Islamic militants.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the July 1 attack and for many other recent attacks on atheist bloggers, foreigners and minority groups, but authorities have rejected the claims, saying there are no signs of the group having any existence in the country. Instead, the government says the local militant groups including the JMB are behind such attacks that have drawn global attention.