One of the accused in the Rohingya leader Mohib Ullah murder case has died at Chittagong Central Jail.
The deceased has been identified as Moulovi Zakaria, 53, son of late Abdul Karim of Block D/8 in Rohingya camp of Ukhia upazila in Cox’s Bazar district.
Chittagong Jail’s Deputy Jailer Monir Hossain said Zakaria was a cancer patient who died inside the jail on Friday night.
Armed Police Battalion (APBn) present arrestee Zakaria Sunday, March 6, 2022 Dhaka Tribune Rohingya leader Mohib Ullah was the chairman of the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights (ARSPH), which has been facilitating the documentation of human rights abuses in Myanmar in 2016 and 2017.
He was shot dead by some gunmen at his office on September 29, 2021.
His assassination is believed to be the most high-profile killing that has happened in the Rohingya camps of south-eastern Bangladesh. Mohib Ullah’s assassination drew worldwide outrage, with the international community condemning the murder.
On September 30, his younger brother Habibullah filed the murder case with the Ukhia police station against unidentified attackers. Officer-in-Charge (Investigation) Salah Uddin investigated the case.
Zakaria, who allegedly was the mastermind behind the killing of Mohibullah was arrested in March this year.
The trial in the murder case started through framing charges against 29 accused on September 11.
A teacher in his 40s, Mohibullah arrived in Bangladesh during the 2016-17 Rohingya exodus from Myanmar.
He came to prominence in 2019 when he met the United States President Donald Trump in the White House as part of a meeting with representatives of persecuted religious minorities. He also addressed the United Nations Human Rights Council.
Mohib emerged as a key refugee leader and spokesperson in international meetings. He led a rally of 200,000 refugees in Kutupalong in 2019 to mark the second anniversary of the 2017 crackdown in Myanmar.
Following his death and fearing security, 11 members of Mohib Ullah’s family, including his wife Nasima Khatun, nine children and sons-in-law, left Bangladesh for Canada on March 31.