Bangladeshi police say they have stormed a hideout near Dhaka and killed the suspected planner of a cafe attack last month that left 22 people dead.

"Tamim Chowdhury is dead," said senior police officer Sanwar Hossain, referring to the Bangladeshi-Canadian suspected mastermind.

Two other suspected militants were killed by police during the raid.

The cafe attack began on 1 July when the militants entered the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka.

They held hostages for 12 hours before police stormed the cafe, rescuing 13, killing six gunmen and arresting another.

Two Sri Lankans also found themselves in the middle of the hostage situation but were rescued unharmed.

Twenty hostages and two police officers were killed in the attack, the worst in the country's history.

(With inputs from BBC)