Paul KeenanThe Catholic community in Bangladesh has been left shaken by a vicious attack on a religious congregation in the country.
Details of the July 7 attack have only recently emerged, but it has drawn condemnation from the Church locally for the brutality of an incident which saw up to 60 men attack the Catholic mission in Boldipukur and the congregation of sisters there.
Describing the attack as “unprecedented”, given that nuns are normally much respected in Bangladesh, Bishop Sebastian Tudu of Dinajpur said: "The attack was massive and lasted about an hour and a half. The attackers brutally beat the nuns…and the pastor was threatened and robbed. The convent was seriously devastated. Only when the police arrived did the attackers leave the mission."
Bishop Tudu added that three of the injured nuns have now been moved to the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, for medical treatment after it emerged that their attackers had attempted to rape them.
Though authorities have not yet offered any explanation for the attack, Bishop Tudu indicated that a recent increase in hostility towards Christian religious appears to have been based on desire for land held by them.
Police has so far arrested 12 men in connection with the mission attack.