Retired officers of the armed forces of Bangladesh called upon the government on Sunday to take back the members of the armed forces to barracks.
A group of retired officials, ranging from former army chiefs to mid-level officers, came up with the statement at a press conference held at the capital鈥檚 RAOWA Club.
The officials said that they organised the event to聽 make their stand clear amid the ongoing situation in the country. They demanded justice for all the recent killings.
Former chief of the Bangladesh Army, Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan, read the statement on behalf of the officers.
He said that they came up with the statement because they were deeply concerned, troubled, and saddened by all the killings, tortures, disappearances, and mass arrests that had tormented Bangladesh in the past three weeks.
鈥楾he patriotic military must not accept any responsibility for the current situation,鈥� he said, asking the army to take soldiers to barracks immediately.
He asked the army not to destroy the forces鈥� reputation by engaging them in a 鈥榙isgraceful campaign.鈥�
Iqbal Karim said that they witnessed all these happenings as guardians of students.
He noted that Bangladeshi armed forces had never faced masses or been trained to target their guns at the chests of fellow citizens.
Iqbal Karim, who served as the chief of army staff from 2012 to 2015, said Bangladesh鈥檚 armed forces have worked tirelessly and made many sacrifices towards establishing global peace in the past three decades.
He said that the respect, status, and pride that the army earned over the years are being put into question today.
He asked the army to stand beside the people of the country, ensuring full adherence to universal human rights.
鈥楢 political crisis was militarised. We, the retired officers, strongly oppose it,鈥� 聽he said.
鈥榃e cannot let our motherland be destroyed in front of our eyes,鈥� he added.
He also observed that the Bangladesh border remained unprotected at the moment, as members of the Border Guard Bangladesh had been withdrawn in significant numbers to quell the student movement.
He demanded an investigation of all killings, injuries, shootings, attacks, vandalism, abductions, arrests, and acts of violence under the supervision of the United Nations, giving it full authority.
Former army chief Lt Gen M Nuruddin Khan, former major generals M Azizur Rahman, Abu Kaiser Fazlul Kabir, Jamil D Ahsan, Rezzaqul Haider, Muhammad Abdul Matin, Mujahid Uddin, Abul Kalam Humayun Kabir, Mahbubul Alam, Ruhul Amin, ATM Shahidul Islam, brigadier generals M Sakhawat Hossain, and Shahedul Anam Khan were present among others at the press conference.
