Bangladesh kills two militants of banned Islamist group

Police have stepped up a hunt for Islamist militants after a wave of violence that included several attacks on mosques, Christian priests and Hindu temples.

Two members of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen group were killed in an exchange of gunfire after police raided their hideout on the outskirts of the capital, Dhaka, after midnight, said Sanwar Hossain, a deputy commissioner of police in the detective branch.

"Our force had to fire back when the militants hurled a grenade and started shooting," he added.

The group is believed to be behind attacks such as the bombings of a Shi'ite shrine and the shooting of three foreigners, two of whom died.

Militant group Islamic State has claimed responsibility for some of the attacks, including the killing of a Christian convert last week.

The government has consistently denied that Islamic State has a presence in Bangladesh, instead blaming Islamist political opponents for instigating violence in the mainly Muslim, but secular, nation of 160 million people.

(Reporting by Ruma Paul; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)