MYSTERY DEEPENS AFTER EX-BANGLADESH AIR FORCE OFFICER LINKED TO HASINA’S DEPARTURE VIDEO IS FOUND DEAD
October 30, 2026
DHAKA, OCTOBER 30, 2026: The discovery of former Bangladesh Air Force Flight Lieutenant KM Tahsif Souri’s body in the Turag River has raised questions about the circumstances surrounding his death and revived attention to his reported connection with a video showing former prime minister Sheikh Hasina leaving Bangladesh in August 2024.
The former officer, who was in his late twenties, was reported missing before his body was recovered near Rajabari Ghat in Dhaka on October 28. Police subsequently sent the body to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital for an autopsy to determine the cause of death.
According to Bangladeshi media reports, Souri was reportedly associated with footage showing Hasina departing the country aboard an Air Force aircraft on August 5, 2024, during the political upheaval that led to the end of her government. However, the precise nature of his involvement in recording or circulating the video has not been conclusively established.
Souri was dismissed from service in August 2024. In a statement issued the following year, the military said his retirement had been carried out under institutional rules and without allegations against him.
Bangladesh's Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed declined to speculate about whether the death was connected to the controversial video, emphasising that investigators needed to establish the facts before drawing conclusions.
Meanwhile, members of Souri's family have alleged that he experienced harassment following the controversy, and his cousin has claimed that he was murdered. These allegations have not been independently established, and authorities have not confirmed any connection between the video and his death.
The investigation now faces the task of determining what happened during Souri's final hours and establishing the cause of his death. Until the findings become available, the circumstances surrounding the case remain unresolved.
