--- description: Hundreds have been killed in Bangladesh since the government launched a crackdown on drugs in May, according to a local rights group title: Rights Group Says 200 Killed in Bangladesh Drug Crackdown image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcbc27c7f1ade429d/69893585096a94e42d6a2eee/gettyimages-963344678.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Bangladesh](/tag/bangladesh/) ## Bangladesh Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Hundreds Killed in Bangladesh Since Philippines-Style Drug Crackdown Began, Rights Groups Say by [Casey Quackenbush](/author/casey-quackenbush/) ## Casey Quackenbush Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 17, 2018 9:29 AM CUT  Several suspected drug dealers detained during the countrywide ongoing anti-drug operation in Dhaka, Bangladesh on May 28, 2018. Several suspected drug dealers detained during the countrywide ongoing anti-drug operation in Dhaka, Bangladesh on May 28, 2018.Rehman Asad—NurPhoto/Getty Images by [Casey Quackenbush](/author/casey-quackenbush/) ## Casey Quackenbush Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 17, 2018 9:29 AM CUT Hundreds of people have been [killed in Bangladesh](https://sg.news.yahoo.com/bangladesh-drug-war-death-toll-hits-200-rights-064700385.html "undefined") since the government launched a crackdown on drugs in May, according to a local rights group, fueling fears that the country is following the brutal lead of the Philippines. While authorities claim that those who lost their lives were involved in at least 10 drug-related crimes, rights groups say they are extrajudicial killings carried out by police, Agence France-Presse reports. “It is unprecedented in Bangladesh. So many people have been killed in such a short period of time,” Sheepa Hafiza, executive director of an organization called Ain o Salish Kendra, told AFP. The group claims that more than 200 people have been killed in just the past two months, while about 25,000 others have been imprisoned. “This is very unfortunate,” he added. “We condemn these extrajudicial killings and want fair investigations into each of these killings.” The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, said in June he was “gravely concerned” that “such a large number of people” had died. **Read more:** [_The Killing Time: Inside Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s War on Drugs_](http://time.com/4462352/rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-drugs-philippines-killing/ "undefined") Bangladeshi authorities began the [sweeping measures](http://time.com/5292886/bangladesh-deadly-anti-drug-crackdown-philippines/ "undefined") in an effort to wipe out “yaba,” a cheap methamphetamine pill used widely in villages and towns throughout across the country.Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced a “war on drugs” in early May 2018 after [reports](https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/06/06/bangladesh-suspend-deadly-war-drugs "undefined") of rising methamphetamine sales and use. Bangladesh’s crackdown on drugs has drawn comparisons to [Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s brutal war on drugs](http://time.com/4462352/rodrigo-duterte-drug-war-drugs-philippines-killing/ "undefined"), raising concern that his methods could spread to South Asia. Philippine authorities have [acknowledged killing more than 4,000](https://www.rappler.com/nation/199587-pdea-report-death-toll-war-on-drugs-philippines-march-2018 "undefined") drug suspects, but rights groups say the actual number could be [triple](https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2018/country-chapters/philippines "undefined") that figure. Last week, Sri Lanka’s president said the South Asian nation would begin [hanging](http://time.com/5336473/sri-lanka-philippines-hanging-drug-dealers-war-on-drugs/ "undefined") drug offenders in an effort to “replicate the success” of the internationally chastised crackdown in the Philippines. If pursued, the plan would mean resuming executions in the country after a moratorium of more than half a century. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5340677/bangladesh-philippines-drugs-death-toll/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5340677/bangladesh-philippines-drugs-death-toll/"},"headline":"Hundreds Killed in Bangladesh Since Philippines-Style Drug Crackdown Began, Rights Groups Say","datePublished":"2018-07-17T09:29:45.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T20:52:19.576Z","description":"The rising death toll has drawn comparisons to the Philippines' bloody war on drugs","url":"https://time.com/5340677/bangladesh-philippines-drugs-death-toll/","keywords":["Bangladesh","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcbc27c7f1ade429d/69893585096a94e42d6a2eee/gettyimages-963344678.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Casey Quackenbush","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/casey-quackenbush/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcbc27c7f1ade429d/69893585096a94e42d6a2eee/gettyimages-963344678.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Anti-drug Operation In Dhaka","caption":"Anti-drug Operation In Dhaka","creditText":"Rehman Asad—NurPhoto/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/bangladesh/","name":"Bangladesh"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5340677/bangladesh-philippines-drugs-death-toll/","name":"Hundreds Killed in Bangladesh Since Philippines-Style Drug Crackdown Began, Rights Groups Say"}}]}] ```