Annual Ahmadiyya Muslim convention attacked

Dozens of Ahmadis were severely injured and at least one person was killed after a mob attacked the inauguration of the 98th Annual Convention of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community which took place in Ahmednagar village, Panchagarh district, Bangladesh on 3 March.

The attack on Ahmadi Muslim homes and businesses resulted in the destruction of a local Ahmadiyya Mosque in the neighbouring village of Darul Wahid Mohalla, and an Ahmadiyya medical clinic and lab.

According to sources, the deceased, who has been identified as Jahid Hasan, 25, was beaten to death when he attempted to protect the convention grounds from the attackers. The International Human Rights Committee (IHRC), an Ahmadiyya monitoring organisation, noted that the attacks started a day before the inauguration ceremony when several youths were witnessed vandalising homes and graveyards belonging to the Ahmadiyya community.

The IHRC noted that a similar attack targeted the annual convention in 2021, but on a smaller scale. Local law enforcement officials have been criticised for the lack of safety and security given the pre-existing vulnerability of the community to religious extremists. IHRC estimates that about 189 houses and 50 shops belonging to Ahmadis were destroyed in the arson attack. However, the full extent of the damage is yet to be determined.

CSW’s Founder President Mervyn Thomas said: ‘CSW is deeply saddened by the news of the attack on the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in Bangladesh and we send our deepest condolences to Jahid Hasan’s family. This devastating attack on the Ahmadiyya community must be thoroughly investigated and the perpetrators prosecuted. We call on the government of Bangladesh to speak out about religious intolerance and show that there can be no impunity for those who target a religious gathering with violence.’