DHAKA, Nov 27 (NNN-BSS) – A Bangladeshi court on Wednesday (today), sentenced seven militants to death, over a case of terror attack on Holey Artisan Bakery cafe, in Dhaka’s diplomatic area of Gulshan, in 2016.
In a packed courtroom, Judge Mojibur Rahman of the Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal, handed down the verdict in the presence of all the eight accused.
The court, however, acquitted one accused in the case, as allegations brought against him was not proven.
Five gunmen stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery cafe on July 1, 2016, and took several dozen hostages.
More than 20 people were killed in the terror attack, including nine Italians, seven Japanese, two Bangladeshis, an Indian and a Bangladeshi-born U.S. citizen.
The gunmen also killed two Bangladeshi police officers, in the early hours of the attack.
About 12 hours after the attack, the Bangladesh army stormed the restaurant, killing the five attackers.
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility for the attack.
But Bangladeshi authorities rejected the claim, saying, members of a banned local militant outfit plotted the attack.