Bangladesh police carry out midnight raid against LGBT rights defender
Police routinely arrest human rights defenders without charge, Bangladesh activist says
“However, the current pattern in Bangladesh is extremely alarming: targeted individuals are frequently picked up without a warrant or any prior case, and only afterwards are they shown as ‘arrested’ in a series of pre-existing or fabricated cases—often involving grave accusations such as murder, attempted murder, seditious conspiracy, or terrorism,” Shahanur says. “Given this trend and the clear intention to frame him retroactively, Advocate Alamgir remains in immediate and serious danger. His safety is far from assured, and we are deeply concerned about the potential for further reprisals.”
A month before the police raid, the Protect Lawyers reported the following (translated here from French):
Repeated Threats and Attacks Against Lawyer and Human Rights Defender Mohammad Alamgir
October 10, 2025
Human rights defender Mohammad Alamgir, Secretary-General of JusticeMakers Bangladesh in France, has been the target of repeated threats and attacks for over a year. These acts of intimidation aim to silence him because of his professional activities and his commitment to fundamental rights.
Mr. Alamgir is a Bangladeshi lawyer dedicated to protecting victims of political and religious violence. He defends people from minority groups, particularly the LGBTQI+ community, who are often targeted by fundamentalist groups or extremist political factions. His public activism and his role as a lawyer in Bangladeshi courts have made him a prime target for intimidation.
For over a year, Mr. Alamgir has been the target of numerous death threats, blackmail, and physical attacks due to his professional activities and activism. These threats primarily originate from individuals affiliated with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Islamist movement Jamaat-e-Islami, who accuse him of defending causes deemed contrary to their ideologies.
In August 2024, Mr. Alamgir was harassed by BNP supporters while preparing to plead in a sensitive case involving former political officials. Two months later, in October 2024, he was physically assaulted in his own office by unidentified individuals linked to the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami.
On July 31, 2025, the lawyer received extortion demands and explicit threats from the BNP in Dhaka. Individuals visited his office in Dhaka on August 22, 2025, while he was attending an academic event in Vic-en-Bigorre, France. They issued death threats against his team, warning that Mr. Alamgir “would be eliminated” if he continued his activities, which they deemed “contrary to religion and the government.”
These recurring attacks aim to silence him and obstruct Mohammad Alamgir’s work as a lawyer, violating fundamental principles of professional independence and the protection of human rights defenders. They reflect a broader pattern of intimidation and repression against lawyers engaged in defending sensitive cases in Bangladesh.
The International Organization for Advocacy in Bangladesh (IOAD) reiterates its unwavering support for the Bangladeshi legal profession.
IOAD urges the Bangladeshi authorities to guarantee the safety and physical integrity of Mr. Mohammad Alamgir under all circumstances.
The International Organization for the Defense of Human Rights (IOD) calls on the relevant authorities to conduct an independent and impartial investigation into these threats and attacks.
The IOD calls on the international community to closely monitor the situation and condemn the persecution of Bangladeshi human rights defenders.
The IOD reminds the Bangladeshi state of its obligations under international law, including the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, specifically Principle 17: “When the safety of lawyers is threatened in the exercise of their functions, they must be adequately protected by the authorities.”
