People paying tributes to victims of Dhaka terrorist attack (Express photo by Shubham Dutta) People paying tributes to victims of Dhaka terrorist attack (Express photo by Shubham Dutta)

The mastermind behind the heinous attack on a cafe in Bangladesh capital Dhaka last July was killed in a shootout during a pre-dawn raid, police said Friday. 22 people, including an Indian, were killed in the attack on the intervening night of July 1-2 last year. Although the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, Bangladesh Home Minister said the attack was the handiwork of the Jamaat ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh.

Neo-Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen’s wanted leader Nurul Islam alias Marjan and another unidentified extremist were killed by Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit in Mohammadpur Beribadh area of Dhaka, PTI reported. Police told the news agency that Marjan coordinated the July 1 attack. Dhaka Tribune had reported that Marjan was the youngest commander of neo-JMB, a new faction of the group attached with ISIS.

WATCH VIDEO | Mastermind Behind Dhaka Cafe Attack Killed: Here’s What Happened

The five terrorists had entered the Holey Artisan bakery in the posh Gulshan area of Dhaka, home to several embassies and diplomats and took several people hostages. After several hours, a joint commando force entered the bakery and killed the attackers, all of whom were Bangladeshi nationals. The siege lasted for 11 hours and resulted in the death of two security force personnel.

While Tarishi Jain, a student of University of California, Berkeley was the lone Indian killed in the attack, the deceased included several Italian and Japanese nationals.

The attack was termed the worst terrorist act in Bangladesh’s history.

(With PTI inputs)

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