3 journos hurt as pickets target media

Rashed Nizam, a journalist of a Tv station Channel 24, shows one of his bleeding hands from inside a damaged office microbus at capital's Malibagh. Pro-hartal activists hurled a crude bomb at the vehicle from a procession on Monday. Photo: Tv grab

Three television journalists were injured today in the capital and northern districts of Rajshahi and Natore as pickets continued attacks on newsmen on the second day of 60-hour hartal.

Of the three, one is reporter and the rest two camerapersons.

Rashed Nizam, a staff reporter of private TV channel 'Channel 24', sustained injuries when JCD activists hurled a crude bomb at a car of the media channel while he was covering the hartal event at Mouchak Market area in the afternoon.

He was admitted to United Hospital with splinter injuries in different parts of his body, hospital sources said.

In Rajshahi, hartal supporters beat up a cameraperson of Somoy TV while he was covering a hartal event at Talaimari Shaheed Minar area of the city around 1:30pm, reports our Rajshahi correspondent.

Police picked up three pickets from the area after the incident.

In Natore, a cameraperson of private TV channel RTV was injured when Awami League activists and opposition men clashed on Dhaka-Natore highway in Kanaikhali area around 12:30pm today.

At least 10 people were injured as both of the parties locked into a clash equipped with wooden sticks.

On the first day of 60-hour hartal Sunday, at least five journalists, including a Pirojpur district correspondent of The Daily Star, were assaulted in three incidents during hartal hours.