Agence France Presse

Dhaka, May 18:

Shops, schools and private offices were closed in the Bangladesh capital Dhaka today as part of a day-long strike called by the opposition Awami League to protest the fatal shooting of a party member. Khorshed Alam, a lawyer and legal secretary of the Awami League’s Dhaka section, was shot dead at close range by unknown assailants yesterday, police said. The killing sparked a rampage by 400 party activists who destroyed vehicles.The Awami League has called nationwide strikes over the past year to protest a series of attacks on party rallies. Attacks include a grenade assault last August that killed more than 20 party activists and which has been described by Washington as an assassination attempt on party leader and former prime minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed.In January, a grenade attack killed five members of Awami League, including ex-finance minister Shah AMS Kibria, who was also a former under secretary.