Witness Testifies of Brother’s Fatal Shooting During July Uprising in Rampura
Photo Collected
A witness has provided harrowing testimony before International Crimes Tribunal-1 regarding the killing of his younger brother during the July mass uprising in Dhaka. Al Amin, the elder brother of the deceased, Saiful Islam, described how his brother succumbed to gunshot wounds sustained while participating in protests in the city’s Rampura area.
According to the testimony, Saiful left his home on July 19 to attend Friday prayers before joining demonstrators near the Rampura kitchen market. Witnesses who accompanied him reported that police and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel opened fire on the crowd. As Saiful approached the pedestrian bridge in the area, he was struck by a bullet in the abdomen.
Al Amin recounted that his brother’s friends initially rushed him to Better Life Hospital in Rampura, where doctors performed emergency sutures before advising that he be transferred to another facility. Saiful was subsequently moved to the Insaf Barakah Kidney Hospital in Moghbazar, where he received dressings and medication before being sent home.
The victim’s condition deteriorated rapidly that night as he suffered from severe pain and recurring vomiting. Despite the family’s attempts to follow the prescribed treatment, the imposition of a nationwide curfew prevented them from returning him to the hospital for further medical intervention. Al Amin told the court that after a night of agony, the family finally fell into an exhausted sleep at dawn; when they awoke at 9:00 a.m. on July 20, they found Saiful dead.
The ongoing case at the tribunal focuses on alleged crimes against humanity committed in the Rampura and Bonosree areas during the unrest. Al Amin testified that, based on information circulated on social media, the operation was led by BGB officials Redwanul Islam and Rafat-bin-Alam, alongside police officers Rashedul Islam and Mashiur Rahman. The witness called for exemplary punishment for those responsible for the violence.
The legal proceedings involve four defendants. Two have been arrested: former BGB Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad Redwanul Islam and Major Md. Rafat-bin-Alam. Two others, former Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Md. Rashedul Islam and former officer-in-charge Md. Mashiur Rahman, remain at large.
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