Today marks the 10th anniversary of the horrific terrorist attack on the Holey Artisan Bakery in the capital's Gulshan area. Executed on July 1, 2016, the assault remains one of the deadliest terrorist incidents in the country's history.

On that terrifying night, a total of 22 people, including foreign nationals, lost their lives. Among the victims were citizens of Italy, Japan, India, and the United States. Additionally, two police officers were killed, and numerous others were injured.

The judicial process for the case has already cleared two major stages. On November 27, 2019, the Anti-Terrorism Special Tribunal sentenced seven defendants to death.

Later, on October 10, 2023, the High Court modified the verdict, sentencing the seven convicts to imprisonment until death alongside financial fines. Currently, leave-to-appeal petitions filed by six of the convicts challenging the High Court verdict are pending hearing in the Appellate Division.

The full text of the High Court judgment noted that based on investigative evidence, confessions, forensics, ballistics, DNA, and other data, it was confirmed that the attack was carried out under the banner of 'Neo-JMB'—an extremist faction of the banned organization Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh. Five militants who directly participated in the massacre were later killed during an army operation.

It was a Friday (July 1, 2016). Shortly after Iftar, a group of armed youths carrying firearms and sharp weapons stormed into the Holey Artisan Bakery and took the guests hostage. Upon receiving the news, personnel from law enforcement agencies, including the Police, RAB, SWAT, and BGB, cordoned off the entire area.

During the initial attempt to rescue the hostages, Assistant Commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Detective Police Robiul Karim and the then-Officer-in-Charge of Banani Police Station Salahuddin Khan were killed in an attack by the assailants. Several others were injured.

The following morning, 'Operation Thunderbolt' was launched under the leadership of the Bangladesh Army. Commando elements breached the building walls using armored vehicles to gain entry.

Although 13 people were rescued alive after the operation, the bodies of 20 hostages were recovered from inside. Among them were nine Italians, seven Japanese, one Indian, and three Bangladeshis. Including the two police officers, the total death toll from the attack stood at 22.

Even though a decade has passed, the nightmarish horrors of the Holey Artisan attack still leave a deep scar on the minds of the people of Bangladesh.