July Martyrs’ Day: ‘Before I die, I want the killers punished’
This news article from The Daily Star (Bangladesh), published August 5, 2026, marks the second anniversary of the death of Abu Sayed, a university student killed by police on July 16, 2024, during the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement (quota reform protests) at Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur. The article focuses on his grieving parents — his mother Monowara Begum, who pleads to see her son's killers punished before she dies, and his ailing father Mokbul Hossain — and recounts how Abu Sayed stood with arms outstretched facing police before being shot dead, an image that became an iconic symbol of resistance. The article also covers the legal aftermath: on April 9, 2026, the International Crimes Tribunal-2 convicted multiple police officers, sentencing two — ASI Amir Hossain and constable Sujan Chandra Roy — to death, with others receiving life imprisonment or shorter terms. Additionally, it notes that a planned memorial project at the university, including a museum and monument announced in 2025, has not yet begun construction due to pending government approvals.
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- The Daily Star
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- The Daily Star
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- Rights retained by the original publisher. Archived as a preservation copy for public research, with attribution and a link to the original.
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The Daily Star. "July Martyrs’ Day: ‘Before I die, I want the killers punished’." The Daily Star, 2026. July Archive. https://julyarchive.org/sources/july-martyrs-day-before-i-die-i-want-the-killers-punished-c77eb2b0.
Persistent identifier: ark:/19160/sy57lfmcld5cebjm7hr4xm23fqa
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