COX’S BAZAR — A long, mysterious streak of light in the sky west of Cox’s Bazar beach drew alarm and curiosity from tourists and residents on Friday evening, in what an intelligence source said was likely an Indian intercontinental ballistic missile test.
The rare streak appeared around 7 p.m. over the Laboni and Sugandha points of Cox’s Bazar beach. As dusk fell, the light became sharply visible across the sky, startling onlookers.
“I was scared at first when I saw it,” said Abdur Rahim, who was on the beach. “It looked a lot like the missiles from the Iran-Israel war.”
Saifur Rahim, another tourist, said he had not expected to see such a sight on a family trip. “It was strange but quite striking,” he said.
A meteorologist at the Cox’s Bazar weather office said the phenomenon was not natural or weather-related.
An air force intelligence source said India had previously notified that it was preparing to test its Agni-VI intercontinental ballistic missile over the Bay of Bengal, and that special airspace restrictions had been imposed from May 4 to May 9.
“We observed the matter directly,” the source said. The Bangladesh Navy has not issued any official comment.
India’s Economic Times reported that a Notice to Airmen had been issued for the test, with airspace restrictions extending about 3,500 kilometers (2,175 miles) from Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Island off Odisha. India routinely conducts major missile tests from the island.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report