国际英语新闻：Death toll of Bangladesh's border guards mutiny rises to 71

DHAKA, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- Forty more bodies of army officers were recovered on Friday from inside and near the paramilitary Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) headquarters in capital Dhaka, raising the death toll of Wednesday's bloody revolt to 71.

    Bangladesh's Home Minister Sahara Khatun on Friday evening said at a press conference held at the home ministry that the joint force of police and Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) found 40 more bodies of army officers, which means a total of 59 army officers have confirmed to be killed.

    With the fresh bodies recovered on Friday, the total death toll of the mutiny has risen to 71 as local reports earlier said bodies of four civilians and eight BDR soldiers were recovered.

    Thousands of the border guards BDR soldiers staged a bloody revolt against their commanding officers deputed from the army, over pay and other benefits on Wednesday morning at their headquarters in west of Dhaka.

    The bloody revolt came to an end with surrender of the mutineers Thursday evening.

    The body of BDR chief Shakil Ahmed was also among the bodies recovered on Friday.

Local people watch troops entering into the paramilitary Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) headquarters in Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh, Feb. 27, 2009. Bangladesh Army took control over the BDR headquarters on Friday morning

Lieutenant Colonel Quamzzaman who narrowly escaped the revolt early Friday morning told reporters the BDR chief was shot to death at the very beginning of the revolt. The wife and two children of BDR chief were also killed.

    Besides, scores of army officers are still missing as there were more than 160 army officers inside the BDR headquarters when the mutineers opened fire on Wednesday morning while 34 of the officers were either rescued or released.

    The government Friday announced 3-day national mourning from Friday in commemoration of the mutiny victims, Abul Kalam Azad, press secretary of Bangladesh's prime minister, told Xinhua.

    The national flag will be hoisted at half-mast during the three days, Azad said.

    The government Friday also decided that all the slain army officers will be buried with state honor.

    BDR, whose main task is to protect the country's borders, is under Home Minister, but its senior officers are all from the Army. They complained they have been ignored and repressed by their army officers for a long time.