11 sued on war crime charges

Eleven people were sued in Noakhali and Gopalganj yesterday and the day before on charge of war crimes including murder, looting and arson in 1971.
A case was filed against Md Belal, 60, an alleged collaborator (razakar) of Pakistan occupation forces, with the court of Judicial Magistrate ASM Shahidullah of Noakhali yesterday, reports a correspondent.
Witness to Bhuiyan Bari killings in Hasanpur under Begumganj upazila of the district Mokhlesur Rahman, 55, filed the petition case.
The court took the case into cognisance and ordered Begumganj police station to investigate it.
According to the case, the accused and his accomplices on November 27, 1971 went to the spot at 6am and attacked the freedom fighters camp set up at a house there. Twenty-six freedom fighters were staying in the camp.
Though the freedom fighters could manage to escape, four members of the family residing in the house -- Shahid Ullah, 19, Nurjahan, 21, Nasima, 3, and Monwara, 21, -- were shot dead by 'razakar' Belal and his accomplices.
The razakars also looted and set on fire 13 houses in the area except for the house of Belal.
The plaintiff and some others witnessed the carnage hiding in a garden behind the houses.
In Gopalganj, a case was filed against 10 alleged razakars on charge of killing seven freedom fighters during 1971 liberation war.
Abdul Latif Sheikh, brother of martyred freedom fighter Matiar Rahman filed the case with a Muksudpur court on Monday.
The accused allegedly encircled a house of Abdul Hamid of Bagat village in Dignagar union where seven freedom fighters including Matiar Rahman were preparing for an operation on August 20, 1971.
The 10 'razakars' took the freedom fighters out of the house at gunpoint. Since then the seven freedom fighters remained missing.
The Public Prosecutor office sources said, Senior Judicial Magistrate of the cognisance court Mostofa Kamal accepted the case and ordered the officer-in-charge (OC) of Muksudpur police station to take necessary steps.
The accused in the case are Habibur Rahman Matubbar, 62, Mohiuddin Hawlader Moni, 61, of Tantikanda village of Rajoir upazila, Md Selim, 63, Abdur Rahman Sheikh, 65, Syed Fakir, 68, Siraj Fakir, 64, Abdul Haque Sheikh, 67, Kibria Sheikh, 61, Abul Kalam Munshi, 63, of Babon Danga village and Mujibur Mina, 65, of Lakhonda village in Muksudpur upazila.
All six witnesses in the case are freedom fighters who escaped from the hands of the razakars on the day.
In the ejahar the complainant accused the 10 'rajakars' of murder, rape, looting, arson and other crimes against humanity.