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(Image source: Bangla News 24)
BY BRIANA ALTERGOTT
A court in Bangladesh sentenced 152 people to death Tuesday in connection with a violent
border guard mutiny back in 2009.
The mass trial involved nearly 850 defendants who were accused of crimes, including ***,
torture, and arson during the bloody riot that claimed the lives of dozens of military
commanders. (Via Daily Mail)
"Scores of top officers were killed in the 2009 uprising. Many of them were hacked to
death, tortured, or burned alive. Seventy-four people were killed during the mutiny, most
of them army officers." (Via WTVW)
The guards, known as the Bangladesh Rifles at the time, say they revolted over demands
for better pay, better facilities, and assignments on U.N. peacekeeping missions. (Via BBC)
The mutiny began at their headquarters in the capital and lasted over 30 hours. When
the riot finally ended, dozens of bodies were reportedly found stuffed in manholes and dumped
in mass graves. (Via CNN)
Though the judge admitted the soldiers should have been given better salaries and other
benefits, he said he was appalled by their actions during the riot.
He said before reading the verdicts, "The atrocities were so heinous that even the dead
bodies were not given their rights." (Via Sky News)
Besides the death sentences, 161 people were sentenced to life behind bars, 256 people
will spend between three and 10 years in prison, and 277 people were acquitted. (Via Al Jazeera)
But this legal battle could just be getting started.
Human Rights Watch has called for a new trial, claiming the suspects had limited access to
lawyers. The group also noted at least 47 suspects died while in custody.