3 pirates killed in Bagerhat ‘gunfight’ with RAB

Three pirates were killed in a ‘gunfight’ with members of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) in Katlar Khal area of the East Sundarbans in Sarakhola upazila Thursday morning.Of the three, two deceased were identified as Saddam,30, and Sohel,27, while the identity of another could not be known yet. Barisal Rab-8 commanding officer Faridul Alam said on a tip-off that a gang of 12 pirates belonging to ‘Sagor-Saikat Bahini’ were staying in the area on Wednesday night.Later, a team of the elite force conducted a drive in guise of fishermen in the dead of night. Suddenly, the gang members opened fire on the elite force as they reached the area at about 7:30 am on Thursday, forcing them to retaliate that triggered a gunfight.Several gunshots were traded during the 30-minute gun battle.Later, the forest robbers disappeared into the deep forest.The force recovered the three bodies from the spot.They also recovered 12 firearms and 55 rounds of bullet from the spot.UNB, Bagerhat