Soldiers join hunt for rebel Bangladeshi guards

Troops helped police search for Bangladeshi border guards who failed to report back to bases today after their failed mutiny and murder of dozens of officers.

More than 1,000 have already been charged with murder, arson and hostage-taking during the rebellion, which ended through negotiations, promises of amnesty and threats of military force.

The government later withdrew its amnesty for those directly responsible and sought to repair its increasingly tense relations with the military.

Only 33 army officers are known to have survived the uprising that began on Wednesday at the Bangladesh Rifles border force headquarters, where as many as 181 officers were present for an annual meeting. Rescuers have recovered 77 bodies, while 71 officers were still unaccounted for.

The rebellion apparently erupted over the guards’ long-standing demands for parity in pay and other perks enjoyed by army officers, who lead the border forces.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government said it plans to form a tribunal to try those who organised the mutiny which she has called “a planned massacre” that may have received outside help.

Ms Hasina met military officials yesterday who were furious that she had offered amnesty to the border guards to persuade them to surrender. The officers argued that lives could have been saved if she had ordered an army assault on the guards’ compound.

Teams searched for bodies buried in the compound or dumped in nearby sewers. Most of the missing were presumed dead.

The insurrection has raised questions about the stability of Ms Hasina’s two-month-old government in the country, which has seen nearly two dozen successful and failed military coups in its 38-year history.

Some questioned whether the border guards acted on their own.

Ruling party spokesman Syed Ashraful Islam said initial evidence suggested the guards may have had outside assistance, but he did not elaborate.

Farukh Khan, a member of the Cabinet and a former army officer, dismissed claims the mutiny was over low pay and told Parliament that it was part of a “deep-rooted conspiracy” by people who wanted to destabilise the country.

Bangladesh returned to democracy after elections in late December 2008, nearly two years after an army-backed interim government took over amid street protests demanding electoral reforms.

Meanwhile today air force jets flew overhead in salute at a mass state funeral for 49 army officers and one family member killed in the mutiny.