Militant killed in Bangladesh shootout

dhaka — Bangladesh police Tuesday shot dead an alleged commander of a banned Islamist outfit blamed for last year’s deadly cafe attack in the capital, an official said.

Police said Abu Jar was a close associate of Jahangir Alam, who was arrested last month after he allegedly led a campaign of targeted killings of religious minorities in the northern region.

Acting on a tip-off police raided a town outside the northern city of Bogra where Jar was killed in a gunfight, Bogra police chief Asaduz Zaman told reporters.

“We fired back after they opened fire at our officers,” Zaman said, adding Jar was wanted in connection with several murder cases.

“Jar was the northwestern commander of the new Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and a close associate of the group’s top extremist Jahangir Alam,” he added.

Rights groups have raised questions about these gunfights. —