A Hindu priest has been killed in Bangladesh, in the latest suspected attack by Islamist militants.The body of Ananda Gopal Ganguly, 70, was found in a rice field near his temple in western Jhenaidah district.
His head had been nearly severed from his neck in the attack, police said. He is the third priest to have been killed in the last two days.
Critics say the government is in denial about the killings, most of which have been blamed on or claimed by Islamists.
Police say more than 40 people have been killed since January last year in the wave of attacks on those seen by extremists as offensive to Islam.
The government insists that Islamic State does not have a presence in Bangladesh and has tended to blame the opposition and local militant groups.
Critics have accused the government of failing to properly address the violence in Bangladesh.
Who is being targeted?
The grim list of those who have fallen victim to attacks by Islamist militants in Bangladesh is growing ever diverse.
Secular bloggers, academics, gay rights activists, and members of religious minorities including Shia, Sufi and Ahmadi Muslims, Christians and Hindus have all been killed, many of them hacked to death.
When a university professor whose family said believed in God was murdered in April, it suggested the list of those at risk had widened further.
Who exactly is behind the attacks remains murky. Bangladesh has myriad extremist groups and there have been few convictions over the attacks.
Bangladesh has disputed claims by so-called Islamic State (IS) or al-Qaeda-linked groups for the attacks, instead often blaming opposition parties or local Islamist groups.
But until the killings stop the government itself will face accusations of not doing enough to protect minorities in the Sunni-dominated nation.
His head had been nearly severed from his neck in the attack, police said. He is the third priest to have been killed in the last two days.
Critics say the government is in denial about the killings, most of which have been blamed on or claimed by Islamists.
Police say more than 40 people have been killed since January last year in the wave of attacks on those seen by extremists as offensive to Islam.
The government insists that Islamic State does not have a presence in Bangladesh and has tended to blame the opposition and local militant groups.
Critics have accused the government of failing to properly address the violence in Bangladesh.
Who is being targeted?
The grim list of those who have fallen victim to attacks by Islamist militants in Bangladesh is growing ever diverse.
Secular bloggers, academics, gay rights activists, and members of religious minorities including Shia, Sufi and Ahmadi Muslims, Christians and Hindus have all been killed, many of them hacked to death.
When a university professor whose family said believed in God was murdered in April, it suggested the list of those at risk had widened further.
Who exactly is behind the attacks remains murky. Bangladesh has myriad extremist groups and there have been few convictions over the attacks.
Bangladesh has disputed claims by so-called Islamic State (IS) or al-Qaeda-linked groups for the attacks, instead often blaming opposition parties or local Islamist groups.
But until the killings stop the government itself will face accusations of not doing enough to protect minorities in the Sunni-dominated nation.
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