Tanks rolled through the Dhaka, Thursday in a show of force that finally persuaded mutinous border guards to lay down their arms and end a two-day revolt that had threatened to spread across the nation. At least 11 people were killed in the insurrection after the guards opened fire on their senior officers and seized their headquarters to protest poor pay and conditions. The guards had agreed overnight to surrender after the government promised them amnesty and agreed to look into their demands. But as the process stalled and the revolt looked to be spreading to other areas Thursday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina stepped in to warn the rebels she would “do whatever is needed to end the violence.” Hours later, tanks and armored vehicles with heavy machine guns rolled into the capital, taking up positions in residential neighborhoods around the border guards' compound. Apparently intimidated by the move, the guards hoisted a white flag on Thursday afternoon and resumed laying down arms. “All the mutinous border guards have surrendered their weapons,” government negotiator Mahbub Ara Gini told reporters, adding that all military officials with their families trapped inside the headquarters had been evacuated. Home Minister Shahara Khatun said police then took control of the compound. She said no more bodies had been discovered on the compound. Firefighters began searching for more bodies late Thursday amid reports that dozens were missing, said fire official Dilip Kumar Ghosh. “We're surveying the area,” he said by phone. In one instance mutineers fired shots at the commanding officer's residence. But after Hasina's address to the nation, violence petered out and no further incidents were reported. Officials originally feared up to 50 people were dead. “We don't want to use force to break the standoff,” Hasina said. “But don't play with our patience. We will not hesitate to do whatever is needed to end the violence if peaceful means fails.” At least 11 people have been confirmed dead in Dhaka. On Thursday, the bodies of eight border guards - all of them of officers - were found outside the violence-wracked headquarters of Bangladesh Rifles, doctors at a local hospital said. The home minister said a total of 22 officials were rescued from the headquarters on Thursday.
