http://news.kuwaittimes.net/2012/09/30/rioters-torch-buddhist-temples-in-bangladesh/ Rioters torch Buddhist temples in Bangladesh DHAKA: A Bangladeshi youth peers at the burnt Buddhist temple of Shima Bihar at Ramu, some 350 kilometres (216 miles) southeast of the capital Dhaka
DHAKA: Thousands of rioters torched Buddhist temples and homes in southeastern Bangladesh yesterday over a photo posted on Facebook deemed offensive to Islam, in a rare attack against the community Officials said the mob comprising some 25,000 people set fire to at least five Buddhist temples and dozens of homes in Ramu town and its adjoining villages, some 350 kilometres (216 miles) from the capital Dhaka. The rioters claimed the photo allegedly defaming the Quran was uploaded on Facebook by a Buddhist man from the area, district administrator Joinul Bari said. “They became unruly and attacked Buddhist houses, torching and damaging their temples from midnight to yesterday morning,” he told AFP. “At least 100 houses were damaged. We called in army and border guards to quell the violence,” he said, adding that authorities had temporarily banned public gatherings in the area to prevent further clashes. It was not immediately clear if there were any casualties, and authorities did not say if any of the rioters were arrested. The country’s home minister, industries minister and national police chief rushed to the scene yesterday morning. Police officer Rumia Khatun said about “25,000 Muslims chanting God is Great” first attacked a Buddhist hamlet in Ramu, torching centuries-old temples, and later stormed Buddhist villages outside the town. Witnesses said the rioters left a trail of devastation at the Buddhist villages. “I have seen 11 wooden temples, two of them 300 years old, torched by the mob. They looted precious items and Buddha statues from the temples. Shops owned by Buddhists were also looted,” said Sunil Barua, a local journalist on the scene. Barua, himself a Buddhist, said 15 Buddhist villages were attacked and more than 100 houses were looted and damaged. “The villages look like as if they were hit by a major cyclone,” he told AFP by phone. Buddhists, who make up less than one percent of Bangladesh’s 153 million population, are based mainly in southeastern districts, close to the border with Buddhist-majority Myanmar. Sectarian tensions have been running high since June when deadly clashes erupted between Buddhists and Muslim Rohingya in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state. Although Bangladesh, where nearly 90 percent people are Muslims, has witnessed deadly clashes between Muslims and Hindus in the past, sectarian clashes involving Buddhists are rare. In recent weeks tens of thousands of Muslims have hit the street across the country to protest a US-made anti-Islam mocking the Prophet Muhammed (PBUH) —AFP +++++ http://news.kuwaittimes.net/2012/10/01/bangladesh-deploys-troops-after-attacks-on-buddhists/ Bangladesh deploys troops after attacks on Buddhists RAMU: Soldiers from the Bangladesh Army erect tents at the torched Lal Ching Buddhist temple at Ramu, some 350 kilometres from the capital Dhaka DHAKA: Bangladesh sent in troops to guard Buddhist neighborhoods yesterday after Muslim mobs carried out fresh attacks on temples and homes over Facebook photos deemed offensive to Islam. At least six temples were attacked in different neighborhoods of the resort region of Cox’s Bazaar late Sunday, with thousands of protesters smashing statues of Lord Buddha before riot police used force to repel the crowds. The violence began Saturday night in the southeast of the country and has since spread to at least five towns and a dozen villages, after claims that a young Buddhist man had posted Facebook photos defaming the Quran. “This was an organized attack. We won’t spare anyone who is found to have played a role,” said Faruk Ahmed, deputy police chief for the southeastern region, adding that nearly 200 people had been arrested. Twenty-five workers from the country’s largest shipbuilder Western Marine were among those detained in the port city of Chittagong and the company closed its shipyard yesterday. A senior army officer, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said around 1,000 troops had been deployed in Cox’s Bazaar and 300 in the nearby village of Ramu, where a mob of 25,000 people ran riot on Saturday night. “We have secured the temples and Buddhist areas. Our teams have set up tents for the people whose houses were burnt,” he said. “We have adequate forces. Things are getting back to normal.” Buddhists, who make up less than one percent of Bangladesh’s 153 million mostly Muslim population, are based mainly in southeastern districts, close to the border with Buddhist-majority Myanmar. Sectarian tensions have been running high since June when deadly clashes erupted between Buddhists and Muslim Rohingyas in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state. The 30-year-old man at the centre of the accusations has gone into hiding after telling local media he did not post the picture on the social media site, insisting someone else had “tagged” him in images on Facebook. Local police chief Najibul Islam said that one photo on the now-blocked account showed a woman standing on an open Quran, while another showed a page of the holy book being flushed down the toilet. The man’s mother and an aunt were given police protection after the violence broke out, officials said. Meanwhile, Bangladesh has accused Muslim Rohingya refugees from Myanmar of involvement in attacks on Buddhist temples and homes in the southeast and said the violence was triggered by a photo posted on Facebook that insulted Islam. “The attacks on temples and houses in Buddhist localities in Ramu and neighboring areas in Cox’s Bazar (district) were perpetrated by radical Islamists,” Home Minister Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir told reporters in Dhaka. “Rohingyas and political opponents of the government were also involved in the attacks.” He described the attacks as a “premeditated and deliberate attempt” to disrupt communal harmony. It was one of the worst sectarian attacks in Bangladesh, spreading fear throughout the Buddhist minority. A team of investigators, comprising government bureaucrats and police officials, began work yesterday. Sunil Barua, a journalist who lives in a Buddhist neighborhood in Ramu, said two of the temples attacked over the weekend were 300 years old. “They looted Buddha statues from the temples, and shops owned by Buddhists were also looted,” he said by phone. “The villages look like as if they were hit by a major cyclone.” Although Bangladesh, where nearly 90 percent of people are Muslims, has witnessed violent conflicts between Muslims and Hindus in the past, sectarian clashes involving Buddhists are rare. In recent weeks, tens of thousands of Muslims have hit the streets across the country to protest against a US-made anti-Islam film mocking the Prophet Mohammed. — Agencies [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Post message: [email protected] Subscribe : [email protected] Unsubscribe : [email protected] List owner : [email protected] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/Yahoo! 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