National Genocide Day today

Today is March 25, National Genocide Day. On this day in 1971, a night of horror descended upon the Bengali nation.

That night, the Pakistani occupation forces, armed with modern weapons, attacked unarmed Bengalis as part of their pre-planned "Operation Searchlight." Their aim was to crush the Bengali people's dream of independence forever.

The genocide that began on March 25, 1971, marked a brutal assault by Pakistani forces on Bengalis. In response, the Bengali people fought a nine-month bloody war, achieved victory, and established independent Bangladesh. The Pakistani military had designed this ruthless massacre under the name "Operation Searchlight" to eliminate opposition and suppress the freedom movement.

The masterminds behind this operation were Major General Khadim Hussain Raja and Major General Rao Farman Ali. No written orders were issued—instead, the command for this genocide was verbally conveyed through military commanders.

Later, in 2012, Khadim Hussain Raja revealed crucial details about "Operation Searchlight" in his autobiography, *A Stranger in My Own Country*. He wrote that on the morning of March 17, Tikka Khan summoned him and Rao Farman Ali to the Command House, where General Abdul Hamid Khan was also present. Tikka Khan informed them that since negotiations with Sheikh Mujib had failed, President Yahya Khan had ordered a military crackdown.

On March 18, Khadim Hussain Raja and Rao Farman Ali finalized the "Operation Searchlight" plan in their office.

American journalist Robert Payne documented that on the night of March 25, approximately 7,000 people were killed in Dhaka, with another 3,000 arrested. This systematic killing quickly spread throughout East Pakistan. Pakistani forces set fire to homes and businesses, leaving streets littered with corpses that became prey for scavenging vultures. The entire region was transformed into a landscape of death.

These figures are corroborated by Pakistan's own government in their official White Paper, which acknowledged that more than 100,000 people were killed between March 1 and March 25.

The violence followed a political crisis triggered by Pakistan's refusal to honor the Awami League's decisive victory in the 1970 elections. As tensions escalated, the Pakistani military leadership secretly planned Operation Searchlight - a coordinated campaign targeting not just Awami League members but the Bengali intelligentsia and civilian population at large. Their strategy aimed to decapitate the independence movement by eliminating its leadership and terrorizing the general population into submission.

From early morning on that day, an uneasy tension hung over Dhaka and across the country. By afternoon, military activity intensified dramatically. At midnight, soldiers launched attacks on Pilkhana, Rajarbagh, Nilkhet, and Dhaka University, turning the night into a bloodbath of horror with tanks, mortars, and heavy weapons.

Siddiq Salik, in his book *Witness to Surrender*, wrote: "The military operation began before the scheduled time on March 25. In moments, the gates of hell swung open."

The Pakistani forces committed brutal atrocities against female students of Rokeya Hall. Professors at Dhaka University were executed. The most savage massacre occurred at Jagannath Hall, where countless students and teachers were slaughtered.

President Yahya Khan secretly left Dhaka for Karachi after finalizing the operation's plans. At the outset of the attack, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was arrested - but not before declaring Bangladesh's independence and calling for nationwide resistance.

Heeding his call, the Bengali people rose in armed resistance, waging a nine-month-long war that culminated in victory on December 16. Thus, an independent Bangladesh emerged on the world map.

To commemorate this horrific genocide, March 25 is observed nationwide as National Genocide Day with due solemnity. On March 11, 2017, the Bangladesh National Parliament unanimously adopted a resolution to officially recognize March 25 as National Genocide Day.