Investigations have shown that members of the Awami League party have used military-grade deadly weapons to suppress unarmed student protesters.
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| [An Awami League partyman shooting towards unarmed protesting students with his M4 Carbine. Source: Jamuna TV] |
Several video footages have confirmed the uses of M4 Carbine and MP5 assault rifles by civilian party members of former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League in July and the first week of August this year.
Europeans24 have analysed two video footages, one of which was independently confirmed that live rounds were fired from a German MP5 in the Savar area of Dhaka city. Another video footage aired on local television channel Jamuna TV showed that bullets were being fired from an American-made M4 Carbine at protestors distanced 100-150 yards away.
Though the identity of the M4 shooter could not be confirmed, it was confirmed that the man behind MP5 was Atikur Rahman Atik, the president of Savar Upzilla Chattra League (BSL), the student wing of Awami League.
Bangladeshi law prohibits a civilian from carrying a firearm without a license. The law also states that no automatic assault, submachine gun, or any other military-grade weapon is licensable. However, it remains unclear how or who provided these weapons to the attackers, and no cases have been filed despite the establishment of a new interim government led by Nobel Laureate Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus following the resignation and flight of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina amid nationwide protests on August 5.