13 hostages rescued, 20 dead as Bangladesh siege ends

by TheHill.com - 07/02/16 7:19 AM ET

Officers on Saturday morning sieged gunmen in Bangladesh who had taken hostages at a bakery, rescuing 13 captives and killing or subduing the attackers.

Twenty of the hostages were killed, as were two officers and six of the seven attackers, according to CNN. The seventh was captured alive.

{mosads}Bangladeshi military officials told CNN the attackers used guns, explosive devices and “a lot of sharp domestic weapons,” and that all hostages killed were foreigners.

The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria have claimed credit for the attack, but U.S. officials were not certain.

The attack on Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka, the nation’s capital, took place during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

The gunmen held the hostages during a 10-hour standoff.

The father of a hostage said the attackers would not harm any captive who could recite Quran verses.

“The gunmen asked everyone inside to recite from the Quran. Those who recited were spared. The gunmen even gave them meals last night,” Rezaul Karim said, according to the Associated Press.

Karim said his son, Hasnat, had taken his wife and two children to the bakery to celebrate the birthday of one of his children and called him as the attack happened.

He said his son and his family were being questioned by authorities as part of the investigation.

President Obama on Saturday released a statement condemning the attack and offering assistance to Bangladeshi authorities.

“Our deepest condolences go out to the families and loved ones of those killed, and we hope for a speedy recovery for those wounded,” he said. “This is a despicable act of terrorism, and the United States stands with Bangladesh and the international community in our resolve to confront terrorism wherever it occurs.”

The State Department on Friday said that all Americans were accounted for in the area.

“We have accounted for all Americans working under chief of mission authority” in Dhaka, State Department spokesman John Kirby told reporters in Washington during the daily briefing.

– Updated at 11:55 a.m.