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Newsmen assaulted, threatened with death

Hartal ends amid sporadic violence in restive Natore

Roving Correspondent, Nature
Armed assailants allegedly of the ruling BNP assaulted a journalist with rifle butts and threatened two others with death in hartal-bound northwestern town of Natore yesterday, newspersons and witnesses said.
They said GM Iqbal Hasan, Natore correspondent of the Daily Janakantha, suffered serious head injuries and bruises all over his body in the attack for what the attackers said was reporting against Deputy Minister of Land Ruhul Kuddus ThlukderDulu.
The attack amid the dawn-to-dusk hartal, called jointly by the Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal and a local vigilant group, Lathi Banshi Shilpa BanikSamity, to protest the killing of Sabbir Ahmed Gama, Dulu’s nephew, on February 7, shell-shocked journalists in the district
"They attacked me as I exposed the arson attacks on the houses of 16 Awami League (AL) adherents by
BNP-mcn in my report," Iqbal claimed.
He said the attackers threatened him with an arson attack on his house if he did not regret in the newspaper’s next issue for his report carried by the Janakantha yesterday.
IhlkinR to The Daily Star, Dulu said he visited Iqbal’s house in the afternoon and expressed his sorrow for the incident.
"He told me about the attackers and I've already directed authorities to take action against the guilty," he said.
Locals said 20 armed men went to the Alaipur house of Iqbal at about 10:45am and called him out saying a local journalist wanted to see him.
They took the 48-year-o!d journalist to the Public Health Engineering Department office, some 15 yards off his house, and beat him up savagely.
They attempted to slaughter the newsman arannlinc him to the ground, but they left as a large crowd gathered and begged for his life.
"No doctor of Natore Hospital came to my house to treat me for the wounds for fear of life and I am not at all safe in Natore," a horror-stricken Iqbal said in a faint, trembling voice.
Two other journalists who received death threats asked not to publish their names.
Sporadic violence marked the hartal when journalists came under increasing pressure to leave the scenes.
AjkerKagoj reporter Shibli Noman and photojournalist Nazrul Islam Zulu were assaulted allegedly by BNP cadres at Basudevpur crossing on the Natore-Naldanga Road at about 12:00pm.
The attackers snatched their identity cards and threatened to torch their motorcycles.
ProthomAlo reporter Anu Mustafa and The Daily Star correspondent Anwar Ali were waylaid at Basudevpur crossing when they were returning from Shahpara, the scene of arson attacks on AL leaders' houses.
Some BNP activists threatened to torch the motorcycles of Janakantha photojournalist Selim Jahangir and Prothom Alo photojournalist Azharuddin infrontofDulu when they were taking photos in the morning.
Pickets damaged some rickshaws and rickshaw-vans in the town during the hartal.
Gama's father Rafiqul Islam Talukder yesterday filed a case against 16 AL leaders and activists, accusing them of killing his son.