DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) – Bangladesh’s government on Sunday played down a statement by the Islamic State group that it was responsible for gunning down a Japanese man in the South Asian country, saying it would investigate the “fishy” claim.
Masked assailants riding a motorbike shot and killed Kunio Hoshi in northern Bangladesh on Saturday, becoming the second foreigner in a week to be fatally shot in the country.
The Islamic State group issued a statement claiming responsibility for the attack, according to the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors jihadi postings online. The report could not be independently confirmed. The extremist group also claimed responsibility for the killing of an Italian aid worker last week.
“Oh, it’s absolutely rubbish, there is no IS in the country, no way,” Bangladeshi Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan told The Associated Press. “Why would IS do this here? These are incidents for creating instability in the country.”
“The claims are fishy and we are examining,” he said.