50 laid to rest with state honours

Now only 6 officers missing

carry the coffins of the slain army officers to be buried with full state honours in the Banani graveyard in Dhaka on Monday.

The army on Monday revised the number of its missing officers down to just seven, and that of the dead to 56. On Saturday, as emotions ran high among the ranks after the massacre by the rebels, the military intelligence chief Brigadier General Mahmud Hossain said 72 were still missing, 63 were dead and 33 officers were found alive.

Forty-eight army officers, wife of the slain BDR director general and a soldier, all killed during the February 25-26 mutiny of the border guards at their headquarters — were laid to eternal rest with state honours in a sombre atmosphere yesterday. Of the martyrs, forty-two were buried at Banani Army Graveyard in the capital and eight at their respective villages.

Earlier, Members of the bereaved families, politicians, army officers and people from all walks of life joined the funeral and paraded before the bodies of 49 officers of the Bangladesh Army and the wife of one of them before they were laid to rest at the Banani graveyard in Dhaka. President Zillur Rahman, who attended the prayer session at the National Parade Ground, laid floral tributes on behalf of the nation on the slain officers’ coffins that were wrapped in national and army flags after the namaj-e-janaza.

The namaz-e-janaza of 50 victims of the BDR headquarter massacre being held at the National Parade Square yesterday.

The army says only six officers are now missing. The new figure comes just three hours after the army’s chief of general staff lieutenant general Sina Ibne Jamali revised Monday the missing counts down to seven from 72, as claimed two days earlier by the military intelligence chief. The new figure was supplied by the military’s press wing ISPR. The army also revised, earlier in the day, the number of dead officers to 56. On Saturday, as emotions ran high among the ranks after the massacre by the mutineers, the military intelligence chief Brig Gen Mahmud Hossain said 72 were still missing, 63 were dead and 33 officers were found alive. Just two days later, the army’s chief of general staff lieutenant general Sina Ibne Jamali released names of the seven missing officers to reporters at a briefing Monday.

Col Gulzar Uddin Ahmed, lt col Manzur Elahi Chowdhury, major Abu Sayed Gazzali Dastgir, major Ahmed Azizul Hakim, major Kazi Ashraf Hossain, and captain Tanvir Haider Noor.

Family members of a slain BDR officer lament at the Banani Army Graveyard where he was laid to rest yesterday.

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