On Nov. 7, a Catholic cathedral and school in Dhaka, Bangladesh, were bombed hours before a worship event that drew bishops from across the country. 

A suspect on a motorbike threw two homemade bombs at the church — one exploded near the gate, and another landed near the property, failing to detonate. No one was injured in the attack. 

The incident did not deter 500 believers from attending the worship event the following morning at St. Mary’s Cathedral, nor did it deter students from returning to school at St. Joseph School the following Monday. 

Police investigators arrested a suspect and identified them as a member of a banned student political party. The church plans to take legal action and punish the perpetrator. 

Father Albert Rozario, pastor of St. Mary’s Cathedral, told AsiaNews, “Police have already visited the site, and we will take legal action regarding the attack.” 

Still, believers walk warily amid the threat of violence directed toward their community. 

“Anxiety grips many of us while going to church,” one churchgoer said. 

Before this bombing, the Holy Rosary Church in Tejgaon, located in the capital, was attacked with a similar homemade bomb on Oct. 8. No one was injured in the attack. Still, many believers are left with a sense of fear at the surmounting violence. Whether these attacks are isolated or related, Dhaka police spokesman Muhammad Talebur Rahman said they “are certainly aimed at terrifying people.” 

Bangladesh ranks 24th on Open Doors’ World Watch List. Since 2024, student political groups have been initiating violent protests against the government, but more recently, their attacks have shifted toward Christians as they prepare for the February 2026 election. 

Father Bulbul Rebeiro, secretary of social communications for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Bangladesh, spoke about the bombing, pleading for peace to be restored. 

“We Christians are very few in number; we are peace-loving people,” Rebeiro said. “But these incidents are frightening us.” 

Story by Bella Agnello 

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