Bangladesh’s Christian minority is shaken and scared after three brutal bomb attacks on two Catholic churches and a school in the country in the past few weeks, an AFP report said. No injuries have been reported yet.
No group claimed responsibility for the attacks or gave reasons for the targets, but police confirmed the attacks were “definitely” designed to sow terror.
The first attack took place on October 8, when a crude bomb was thrown at Dhaka’s oldest church, the Holy Rosary Catholic Church, founded by the Portuguese in the 17th century.
Then on the night of Friday (November 7), the attackers attacked two more Catholic sites – St. Mary’s Cathedral and St. Joseph’s School and College.
Notably, the Bangladeshi Christian community is a small minority of 5,00,000 in a country of 17 million.
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What did the police say?
Dhaka police spokesman Muhammad Talebur Rahman told AFP: “We are trying to find out if the incidents are linked or isolated – they are definitely aimed at scaring people.”
Rahman said the attackers targeting the cathedral approached on a motorbike and “threw a crude bomb on the school grounds and fled”.
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How did Catholics in Bangladesh respond?
Speaking to AFP on November 9, one churchgoer said there was a “scary feeling” in the community. “Many of us get anxious when we go to church,” said the 25-year-old university graduate, who asked to remain anonymous.
Nirmal Rozario, president of the Bangladesh Christian Association, said a crude bomb exploded outside St Mary’s Cathedral, but that around 500 people attended a service the next day.
Brother Chandan Benedict Gomes, headmaster at St Jospeh’s, said the attack had caused “anxiety” but “classes were going on as usual”.
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Political turmoil, tension before the elections in February 2026
Bangladesh has been in political turmoil since a deadly uprising that toppled Sheikh Hasina’s autocratic government more than a year ago, according to a report. Recent attacks on Christian sites are raising tensions as the parties prepare for elections scheduled for February 2026, the report said.
Interim leader Muhammad Yunus, an 85-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate serving as a top adviser, has repeatedly promised that the first elections since the uprising will be held in February as planned, despite the violent incidents.
On November 5, the major parties began their campaigns, which almost immediately turned violent, by shooting at a rally for the powerful Bangladesh National Party.
Bangladeshi police this month also offered cash rewards for the surrender of more than 1,300 machine guns, rifles and pistols looted during last year’s uprising.
