US convoy attacked, 50 injured in protests in Bangladesh

Amid escalating casualties from nationwide student protests, the U.S. envoy’s convoy came under attack from a group of armed adults in the capital Dhaka, said U.S. officials on Sunday.

Ambassador Marcia Bernicat and her security team left the Mohammadpur area unharmed after the Saturday night attack, but two security vehicles were damaged, said a U.S. Embassy statement.

In a statement on Facebook, the embassy added: “While we do not condone the actions of a few who have engaged in senseless property destruction, including of buses and other vehicles, nothing can justify the brutal attacks and violence over the weekend against the thousands of young people who have been peacefully exercising their democratic rights in supporting a safer Bangladesh.”

University and high school students in Dhaka have been protesting for safer roads and justice for their two peers who were killed in an accident in Dhaka on July 29.

At least 50 people -- including 10 journalists -- were also injured in a clash between police and ruling party members, reported local daily Prothom Alo.

Several thousand students also marched on the Dhaka headquarters of the ruling Awami League in Dhanmondi to protest attacks on students on Saturday by Awami’s student branch, injuring hundreds.

Speaking to reporters, representatives of Awami and the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) blamed each other for the volatile situation.

In another development, the elite Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) unit arrested a local actress on charges of spreading rumors online which fueled the protests.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan on Sunday warned of stern measures against anyone who tests the government’s patience.

He called on protesting students to go home, adding that their demands will be met.

The protests also again kept public buses off the streets, causing hardship to commuters in the capital.