| 2018–2019 Bangladesh drug war | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Policemen arrested drug sellers in Dhaka | ||||||||
| ||||||||
| Belligerents | ||||||||
|  Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | ||||||||
 Mohammad Abdul HamidSheikh Hasina | Kamrul Islam † Akramul Haque † Riazul Islam † | Shah Sahib | ||||||
| Strength | ||||||||
| 12000[3] | Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | ||||||||
| 466–800+ deaths[4] | ||||||||
The2018–2019 Bangladesh drug war or2018–2019 Bangladesh's war on drugs was a campaign against alleged drug dealers and users by the government ofBangladesh under Prime MinisterSheikh Hasina. Theextrajudicial killings of alleged drug dealers by the elite anti-crime unitRapid Action Battalion (RAB) and the police have been criticized by various human rights groups and foreign diplomats.[5][6] The conflict ended in 2019 with the victory of the Bangladeshi government.[2]
Bangladesh has an unknown number of drug addicts, with estimates ranging from 100,000 to 4 million.[7] Since 2015, the Bangladesh government has focused on eradicating a cheap methamphetamine tablet known asyaba, and police have made significant pill seizures during that time.[8] According to a 2016 Bangladeshi official estimate, more than 29 million yaba tablets were confiscated in 2016, up from 1.3 million in 2011.[9] There are allegations that a number of the larger dealers are linked to the then rulingAwami League party,[10] and affiliated groups such asJubo League, andSwechasebok League.[11]
Bangladesh started a major yaba crackdown in mid-May, 2018 in response to a surging trade of the drug. Fifty-two accused drug dealers were confirmed killed in the first 10 days of the operation.[5] According to a Bangladesh Police spokesperson, about 15,000 people were arrested in nationwide raids in the first three weeks of the operation.[9] 22,000 people were arrested between mid-May 2018 to July 2018 as a result of alleged involvement in the drug trade.[12] According toOdhikar, a Dhaka-based human rights group, 211 drug suspects were killed from mid-May 2018 to July 2018, more than a third of whom were arrested first.[8] Most of the killings followed a common script: alleged drug dealers died in "gunfights", usually at night, with weapons and drugs discovered near the deceased drug dealers.[13]
Some of the notable incidents of killing are:
After nearly a year-long crackdown on illegal drug trade, over 100 drug dealers reportedly surrendered on 16 February 2019, ending the conflict.[2]
According toThe Daily Telegraph, there are allegations that the campaign is a "cover for a wave of extrajudicial killings and political intimidation ahead of ageneral election later this year".[14] In a cited incident, Habibur Rahman, an activist for the opposition party, was killed in an alleged shootout. His family said that he had been arrested at a mosque and had never used drugs.[14] TheU.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, the European Union,Human Rights Watch,Marcia Bernicat, and theUS ambassador to Bangladesh all expressed concern over the number of people killed.[14][8][9]
Prime MinisterSheikh Hasina denied that any innocent people were being harassed andAsaduzzaman Khan, the Minister of Home Affairs, dismissed any allegation ofextrajudicial killing.[14] One police officer in charge of an operation that ended with the killing of an alleged drug dealer said drug use led to crime and claimed that arresting drug dealers did not help.[8]
They come out on bail and they do the same thing, selling and using drugs ... Every drug dealer should be killed. Then drugs can be controlled.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan denied allegations that the police were executing suspects without taking them through the judicial process. "Our law enforcement people don't execute anyone. If they do so, they will going against ethics, and will be fired if investigations prove they acted outside the law. This is not a lawless country," he told Reuters.[8]
There have been strong allegations that no actions have been taken against ruling party MP,Abdur Rahman Badi and associate despite reports from five state agencies that mentioned him as patron of the drug trade.[15]