On 17 August 2005, around 500 bomb explosions occurred at 300 locations in 63 out of the 64 districts of

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. The bombs exploded within a half-hour period starting from 11:30 am. A

terrorist Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

organization,

Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen ("Assembly of Mujahideen--Bangladesh", abbreviated: JMB; bn, জামাত-উল-মুজাহিদীন বাংলাদেশ) is a terrorist organisation operating in Bangladesh. It is listed as a terror group by ...

(JMB) claimed responsibility for the bombings. The group, led by

Shaykh Abdur Rahman Shaykh Abdur Rahman, also known as Abdur Rahman Shaykh, (died 30 March 2007) was the leader and the administrative head of the banned terrorist organization Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh ( en, Awakened Muslim Masses of Bangladesh). Biography R ...

and Siddiqur Rahman (also known as

Bangla Bhai Siddique ul-Islam ( bn, সিদ্দিকুল ইসলাম ''Siddikul Islam''), known popularly as Bangla Bhai (বাংলা ভাই "Bengali Brother") (1970 – 30 March 2007), also known as Jawad uddin attari ( bn, আজিজ ...

). Another

group, named

Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami ( ar, حركة الجهاد الإسلامي, ''Ḥarkat al-Jihād al-Islāmiyah'', meaning "Islamic Jihad Movement", HuJI) is a Pakistani Islamic fundamentalist Jihadist organisation affiliated with Al-Qaeda and Talib ...

, was associated with JMB in executing the co-ordinated attack. Following the bombings, both groups were banned by the BNP Government of Bangladesh.

Attacks

The bomb exploded near

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

facilities. In

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...

, they exploded near Bangladesh Secretariat, the Supreme Court Complex, the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

's Office, the

Dhaka University The University of Dhaka (also known as Dhaka University, or DU) is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is the oldest university in Bangladesh. The university opened its doors to students on July 1st 1921. Currently i ...

campus, the Dhaka

Sheraton Hotel Sheraton Hotels and Resorts is an international semi-luxury hotel chain owned by Marriott International. As of June 30, 2020, Sheraton operates 446 hotels with 155,617 rooms globally, including locations in North America, Africa, Asia Pacific, Cen ...

and

Zia International Airport Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport ( bn, হযরত শাহ্‌জালাল আন্তর্জাতিক বিমানবন্দর, Romanization of Bengali, Romanized: ''Hôzrôt Shahjalal Antôrjatik Bimanbôndôr' ...

. At least 115 people were injured when 500 small bombs were exploded in 63 out of 64 districts of Bangladesh. The explosion killed two people (a child in Savar, near Dhaka, and a

rickshaw A rickshaw originally denoted a two- or three-wheeled passenger cart, now known as a pulled rickshaw, which is generally pulled by one person carrying one passenger. The first known use of the term was in 1879. Over time, cycle rickshaws (also ...

-puller in

Chapai Nawabganj District Chapainawabganj (Bengali: চাঁপাইনবাবগঞ্জ) is located in the north-western part of Bangladesh. It is a part of the Rajshahi Division, and was formerly a sub-division of Malda district. The north and west part of Chap ...

), and injured a further 50.

Victims

*Rickshaw driver Rabiul Islam was injured when seven bombs exploded at about 11:10am at Biswa Road crossing near Shah Neamatullah College in the Nawabganj. He died on way to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital. *Schoolboy Abdus Salam, who was 10 was injured when bomb exploded outside his house in

Savar Savar ( bn, সাভার) is a city in central Bangladesh, located in Dhaka District in the Dhaka Division, division of Dhaka. It is the closest city from Dhaka. It is also a part of Greater Dhaka conurbation which forms the Greater Dhaka, D ...

. He died in the hospital.

Trials

The main perpetrators of the bombing, Bangla Bhai and Shaykh Abdur Rahman, were captured by the

Rapid Action Battalion Rapid Action Battalion or RAB, is an anti-crime and anti-terrorism unit of the Bangladesh Police. This elite force consists of members of the Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh Police, Bangladesh Navy, Bangladesh Air Force, Border Guard Bangladesh, Ba ...

in early March 2006 during the BNP led government."Top Bangladesh militant captured: police"
,

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was estab ...

news report, 6 March 2006. They were convicted of murder and terrorism charges, along with four other militants, and were executed by hanging on 30 March 2007. Five suspects were sentenced to death and one to 20 years in prison for their part in the bomb attacks in

Bogra Bogra ( bn, বগুড়া), officially known as Bogura, is a major city located in Bogra District, Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh. The city is a major commercial hub in Northern Bangladesh. It is the second largest city in Rajshahi Divi ...

. By 2013, 200 cases out of 273 cases filed in connection with 2005 Bangladesh bombings have been disposed of. Different courts have sentenced 58 people to death and 150 were sentenced to life in prison and 300 others were sentenced to various terms in prisons.

Reactions

Motiur Rahman Nizami Motiur Rahman Nizami ( bn, মতিউর রহমান নিজামী, links=no; 31 March 1943 – 11 May 2016) was a politician, former Minister of Bangladesh, Islamic scholar, writer, and the former leader of the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-I ...

, the then industry minister, from

Jamaat-e-Islami Jamaat-e-Islami ( ur, ) () is an Islamic movement founded in 1941 in British India by the Islamic theologian and socio-political philosopher, Syed Abul Ala Maududi.van der Veer P. and Munshi S. (eds.''Media, War, and Terrorism: Responses fro ...

blamed

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

for the blast. *

Moudud Ahmed Moudud Ahmed (24 May 1940 – 16 March 2021) was a Bangladeshi lawyer and politician. He was a standing committee member of Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Ahmed was elected as a Jatiya Sangsad member total five times from Noakhali-1 and Noakhali-5 ...

, the then law minister, from

Bangladesh Nationalist Party The Bangladesh Nationalist Party ( bn, বাংলাদেশ জাতীয়তাবাদী দল, Bangladesh Jātīyotābādī Dol; BNP) is a centre-right to right-wing nationalist, political party in Bangladesh and one of the major ...

said "If they try for 100 years, they will not turn Bangladesh into a

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

state,". *The then chief cleric

Ubaidul Haq Ubaidul Haq ( bn, উবায়দুল হক; 2 May 1928- 6 October 2007), also spelt Obaidul Haq ( bn, ওবাইবদুল হক), was a Bangladeshi teacher, muhaddith, mufassir and writer. He was the former khatib of the national mo ...

remarked to thousands of worshippers at

Baitul Mukarram Mosque Baitul Mukarram Mosque ( ur, بیت ال مکرّم) is a mosque in Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at t ...

, "

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

prohibits

suicide bombing A suicide attack is any violent attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have occurred throughout histor ...

s. These bombers are enemies of

. It is a duty for all Muslims to stand up against those who are killing people in the name of Islam."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bangladesh series bombings, 2005 2000s in Dhaka 2005 murders in Bangladesh 2000s trials Attacks on buildings and structures in Bangladesh Attacks on government buildings and structures Attacks on hotels in Asia Hotel bombings Attacks on universities and colleges Crime in Dhaka Explosions in Dhaka Improvised explosive device bombings in 2005 Improvised explosive device bombings in Bangladesh Islamic terrorism in Bangladesh Islamic terrorist incidents in 2005 Terrorist incidents in Bangladesh in 2005 Trials in Bangladesh Building bombings in Bangladesh August 2005 events in Bangladesh

Attacks

Victims

Trials

Reactions

See also

References