Amnesty fears attacks on Bangladesh Hindus

Amnesty International has said the execution of Bangladesh's Jamaat-e-Islami leader and war criminal Abdul Quader Mollah could trigger more violence with the country's minority Hindu community bearing the brunt.

Mollah, who was also the Jammat's assistant secretary general, was hanged at 10.01 p.m. Thursday, hours after the country's highest court dismissed his petition to review his death sentence.

Mollah was sentenced to death for crimes against humanity in the 1971 Liberation War.

"The execution of Abdul Quader Mollah should never have happened. The death penalty is a human rights violation and should not be used to punish other alleged human rights violations," said Abbas Faiz, Amnesty International's Bangladesh Researcher, in a press release.

"The country is on a razor's edge at the moment with pre-election tensions running high and almost non-stop street protests. Mollah's execution could trigger more violence with the Hindu community bearing the brunt," Faiz said.

The rights body said Hindus are at a risk of reprisal attacks after the execution.

"Bangladesh's minority Hindu community has been targeted in attacks this year following an earlier ICT (International Crimes Tribunal) verdict, they are at particular risk of violence now the execution has been carried out," Faiz said.

"The authorities must ensure that anyone at risk, especially Hindus, are given the protection they need at this tense time. Whole villages were burned down in the violence against Hindus this year and no one has been brought to justice.

"It is also crucial that all politicians in Bangladesh make it crystal clear to their supporters to refrain from human rights abuses and that attacks on Hindu communities are unacceptable," Faiz added.