A female journalist has been harassed and subjected to physical assault while reporting from the scene, allegedly by protesters opposed to the government, according to her account.
At around 3:30pm on Sunday in Shahbagh, Sahamima Sultana Labu, a journalist from a private television channel, went live for her channel.
Suddenly, a mob encircled her, chanting slogans of “Bhua (fake),” a chant widely used by anti-government protesters throughout the country.
They attacked her and the cameraperson.
While she pleaded for mercy, the attackers separated her from the cameraperson and continued the assault.
“Armed with sticks, they hit my head and several other parts of my body, and they also shoved me. Two colleagues who were standing nearby rushed to rescue me but to no avail; both of them also came under attack,” added the journalist.
This merciless attack lasted for around 20 minutes, during which they even branded us as “dalals” (collaborators).
“Finally, we managed to flee as we sneaked into BSMMU,” she wrote.
Another journalist in Sirajganj from a minority community was brutally hacked to death by forces that took to the streets demanding the non-cooperation movement.
A Dhaka Tribune journalist covering the ongoing demonstration related to the non-cooperation movement was assaulted in Dhaka's Dhanmondi-27 area. The incident occurred around 11:30 am on Sunday.
In the morning, several journalists held the BNP-Jamaat alliance responsible for the attacks on press officials, quoting injured colleagues and claiming these attacks are designed to stop them from filming violence.
Since the outbreak of violence, journalists have borne the brunt of targeted attacks, with one life lost and several injured.
