Two US senators yesterday called on Bangladeshi authorities to urgently conduct an independent and impartial investigation into the security services' human rights violations.

US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Ben Cardin and Senator Cory Booker also called for respecting the rights of the protesters and work in good faith to address their grievances.

In a statement issued yesterday, they condemned Bangladeshi security forces for their use of force and violence against student protesters. The security forces involved in these horrific acts include a paramilitary unit whose leaders have faced US sanctions over human rights abuses.

"In recent weeks, thousands of students have taken to the streets in Bangladesh to protest a lack of economic opportunity and to end the government's inequitable quota system for public sector employment that reserves government jobs for relatives of veterans of Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence," the statement said.

Rather than engage the legitimate grievances of the protesters, the Bangladesh security forces, including the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), responded with brute force, killing hundreds of protesters, and arresting and injuring thousands more, they said.

The statement said the right to peacefully assemble and protest is one of the foundations of a democratic society.

"The United States stands with these courageous individuals who are advocating for their dignity and for a prosperous future, and we will continue to speak up for human rights in Bangladesh and seek to hold accountable those involved in such abuses."