1971 Dhaka University massacre

The 1971 Dhaka University massacre was the mass murder of students and teachers of the University of Dhaka in East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh) by the Pakistan Army. On the night of 25–26 March 1971, under the orders of Yahya Khan, the Pakistan Army attacked the university campus as the initial phase of Operation Searchlight, aiming to destroy what it considered the heart of Bengali nationalism. Pakistani forces shelled residential halls, including Jagannath Hall and Rokeya Hall; eyewitness accounts indicate hundreds were killed, though some Pakistani officials claimed only a few dozen died.