Pakistan and Bangladesh War of 1971
By: Sydney Ellertson
Key Facts
The Pakistan and Bangladesh War of 1971 was when Bangladesh, formerly known "East Pakistan" wanted to separate from "West Pakistan" (modernly known as Pakistan). These countries were not physically by each other, but they both bordered India. Keep this in mind. The war began on March 25th. There were thousands of people killed the first night. The reason for this was because the West Pakistani government launched a search to find Bangladeshi people and kill them, this was to deter the rest of the Bangladeshis from seeking independence. The war ended on December 16th. The death toll is believed to be between 300,000 and 500,000 deaths. There were also, roughly, 200,000 women raped. Bangladesh was able to win because India invaded the war and helped them. Pakistan eventually surrendered. Bangladesh had won its independence. Around eight to ten million people fled the country at the time to live in India, so they would be safe. This war took around half of Pakistan's population. Nowadays, Bangladesh is the world's fourth most populous Muslim state. There were many films made based off of this war.
[source: http://www.arabnews.com/news/458077]
Fighters preparing to shoot men who collaborated with the West Pakistani army.
Indian army attacking in Sindh to suppory Bengali rebels.
West Pakistani soldiers rounding up a Bangladeshi fighter.
[Source: http://herald.dawn.com/news/1153304]