Assistant Secretary General of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and Head of the Central Publicity and Media Department Advocate Ahsanul Mahboob Zubair issued a statement on 23 August strongly condemning the heinous attack on two journalists of Somoy Television.

In the statement, he said, “During the collection of information regarding the distribution of cows among fishermen as government aid on Friday (22 August) at noon, in the Bhabanipur area of Daulatkhan upazila in Bhola district, Somoy Television’s Senior Reporter Nasir Uddin Liton and Video Journalist Utpal Debnath came under attack led by local BNP leader Kazi Russel. In this attack, two journalists were seriously injured. I strongly condemn this disgraceful incident.

He further said, journalists are the mirror of society. They play a vital role in exposing corruption, irregularities, extortion, and crime. An attack on them is not only an attack on journalism but also a blatant interference with freedom of expression.

I call upon the government to ensure the safety of journalists and to arrest the attackers promptly and bring them under exemplary punishment.”