Bangladesh records 257 attacks on minorities in first half of 2026, rights body seeks stronger legal safeguards

Dhaka, July 28 (IANS) As violence against minorities continues unabated across Bangladesh, a leading minority human rights organisation documented at least 257 incidents of communal violence across the country during the first half of this year, resulting in 44 deaths.

In its latest findings, the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, a human rights organisation working against religious discrimination, said that the 257 incidents included 40 cases that claimed 44 lives; 5 incidents of violence against women, including rape and gang rape; and 10 cases of abduction, extortion, and torture.