US embassy cable - 05DHAKA5594

UNCLAS DHAKA 005594 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PTER, KISL, PGOV, BG, BG Terrorism 
SUBJECT: ASSASSINATION OF TWO JUDGES SPARKS COURT 
PROTESTS 
 
1. (SBU) Summary: An IED thrown at a court commuter van 
killed two judges and injured four others in southern 
Bangladesh.  Home State Minister Babar speculated to 
reporters that Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), the 
alleged perpetrator of the August 17 and October 3 bomb 
blasts, was behind the attack.  District judges across 
the country subsequently walked out of court in protest 
and threatened a "greater movement" if the BDG fails to 
ensure security for judges by November 21.  End Summary 
 
2. (SBU) On November 14, assailants hurled an IED at a 
van carrying judges from their residential quarters in 
Jhalakhati, about 200 miles south of Dhaka, to the local 
district court, according to press and other reports. 
Senior Assistant Judges Sohel Ahmed and Jagannath Pery 
were killed and several other persons were injured, 
including a suspected attacker named Mamun. Local people 
reportedly detained Mamun, who, according to some 
   reports, unsuccessfully tried to explode another bomb 
   from his pocket on way to hospital in Barisal.  BDG 
   officials and media reports said Mamun carried leaflets 
   from Jamaatul Mujahidin Bangladesh (JMB) calling for the 
   implementation of Islamic law.  Police subsequently 
   raided Mamun's house in northern Rajshahi district and 
   found a large number of JMB leaflets, and detained 
   another suspect from Jhalakathi. 
 
   3. (SBU) District judges across the country walked out 
   of court to protest the attack, the fourth of its kind 
   since the 17 August serial blasts that rocked all but 
   one of Bangladesh's 64 districts.  Leaders of the 
   Judicial Service Association expressed grave concern at 
   the insecurity of judges in the face of JMB threats and 
   attacks.  They threatened "a greater movement" if the 
   BDG fails to ensure their security by November 21.  The 
   Supreme Court Bar Association in Dhaka also called for 
   measures to ensure security for judges and lawyers.  The 
   lawyers boycotted Supreme Court hearings this afternoon 
   and announced another boycott for November 17. 
 
   4. (SBU) Babar, Law Minister Ahmed, and the chiefs of 
   the police and the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) visited 
   Jhalakhati and consoled the families of the victims. 
   Babar told reporters that JMB was using the name of 
   Islam to carry out activities not approved by Islam. 
   Ahmed said perpetrators of violence are enemies of 
   Bangladesh whose objective is to destabilize the 
   country. 
 
5. (SBU) The Jhalkhati incident occurred one day after 
the heads of government of the seven South Asian 
countries that comprise SAARC promised at their Dhaka 
summit to bolster counter-terrorism cooperation.  Judges 
and court premises featured prominently in the August 17 
and October 3 bomb blasts.  On November 8, police had 
reportedly recovered 13 locally made bombs from an 
abandoned building in Jhalakhati, a hub of ultra 
Maoists, and arrested three persons for interrogation. 
 
CHAMMAS