“I am very afraid and not sure whether I will be able to come out alive.”
By Dileep Thekkethil
When three aspiring students took their seats at the Holey Artisan Bakery café situated in the diplomatic center of Bangladesh’s capital city Dhaka on Friday, they never thought their dreams and ambitions will meet a tragic end within its four walls.
Among the 20 people killed by the terrorists were students of American universities Tarishi Jain and AbintaKabir, and their Bangladeshi friend Faraaz Hossain, all waiting for Miraaj al-Haque for a post Iftar get-together. Miraaj, who came a bit late was horrified by the news that his friends have been kept hostages inside the cafe.
Like Miraaj, many others including friends and family members of the hostages waited outside the militarized cafe to see their loved ones coming out scot-free. But they never thought that the hostage situation will soon turn into one of Bangladeshi biggest terrorist attacks.
Tarishi Jain, a 19-year-old Indian, was a student of the University of California – Berkley’s Subir and Malini Chowdhury Center for Bangladesh Studies. She came to Dhaka as part of her internship program in Eastern Bank Limited in Dhaka where she was doing a project on the growth of e-commerce.
Tarishi who was fond of pop culture and watching TV shows like Big Bang Theory and Friends was a dream chaser who aspired to do service to make the world a better place to live.
Her recent Facebook post reads: “We are so excited to launch our new clothing line! Pleeease support us in our mission to help rising entrepreneurs and fight poverty all around the world.” She along with her friends had recently launched a firm called Ethical Apparel.
The description on the website of the firm says it is a nonprofit apparel design and printing service that provides opportunities for individuals to reach financial self-sustainability. Her father being a textile merchant in Bangladesh for the past 10-15 years, it must have been natural for her to have an affinity to the textile industry.
But, Mr. Jain can no longer see his daughter chasing her dreams and what will haunt him in the years to come will be the last message Tarishi wrote: “Terrorists have entered the restaurant. I am very afraid and not sure whether I will be able to come out alive. They are killing everyone here.”
SanchitaSaxena, executive director of the Institute for South Asia Studies and director of the Center for Bangladesh Studies said: “We are all very devastated to hear the news about Tarishi Jain. She was a smart and ambitious young woman with a big heart. Our deepest condolences to her family, friends, and the entire Berkeley community”
AbintaKabir, 18-year-old Bangladeshi-American sophomore at the Emory University boarded the flight to her native, hoping to return after the vacation and to collect her scores for the summer course that ended June 22.
According to her professors, Abinta was so excited of traveling to Bangladesh and she used to talk a lot about her love for the native country, its people, the culture, and the history. But, when terrorists slashed her throat for not being able to recite verses from Koran in Bangla, they not only killed an aspiring student, but also a Muslim, who, if spared would have stood for what the Holy Book teaches – love and kindness.
Faraaz Hossain, the 19-year-old Bangladeshi student who was along with his two friends Tarishi and Abinta didn’t fail his conscience even when the terrorists went on a killing spree. According to his brother Zaraif Hossain, Faraaz was allowed to leave the café after he recited verses from Koran, but he stayed back to be with his female friends, who should have been in a state of shock.
Zaraif words about what the boys were taught by their mother regarding respecting and caring gives a glimpse of how a majority of Muslims imbibe teachings of Koran and practice it in daily affairs. Zaraif said: “Our mom has raised us to always respect and protect women and he (Faraaz) did so until the end.”
The militant siege in the café ended when the police stormed into the building killing six out of seven terrorists and capturing one alive. Soon after the end of the siege, ISIS posted the pictures of the jihadist terrorists, all posing with a wide grin. But, authorities in Bangladesh and India are dismissing any links of the terrorists with the notorious Islamic State. They suspect the involvement of Ansarullah Bangla Team, the radical group that earlier killed bloggers and social media activists in Bangladesh.
It is shocking that some of the terrorists killed attended elite schools and universities in Bangladesh and were radicalized at a very young age of early and mid-twenties. Even though the authorities deny any link between the terrorists and the infamous ISIS, it is evident that at least a few radical groups in Bangladesh have been inspired by ISIS propaganda and not admitting this, and failing to devise counter mechanism would mean radicalization of the youth will continue in Bangladesh and at least a few educated youth like the terrorists who attacked the Holey Artisan Bakery café, will build their own network in the country unabated until they deliver another shocker to the world.