The Shapla Square protests, or the Motijheel massacre_, (also known as Operation Shapla or Operation Flash Out by security forces) refers to the protests, and subsequent shootings, of 5 and 6 May 2013 at Shapla Square located in the Motijheel district, the main financial area of Dhaka, Bangladesh. The protests were organized by the Islamist pressure group, Hefazat-e Islam, who were demanding the enactment of a blasphemy law. The government responded to the protests by cracking down on the protesters using a combined force drawn from the police, Rapid Action Battalion and paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh to drive the protesters out of Shapla Square.

Following the events at Motijheel, protests in other parts of the country also broke out, during which 27 people died, although different sources report casualty numbers ranging from 20 to 61. The opposition party BNP initially claimed thousands of Hefazat activists were killed during the operation, but this was disputed by the government.Human Rights Watch and other human rights organizations put the total death toll at above 50, but rights groups have termed the events as a massacre. Initial attempts to dispute the chain of events were thwarted due to the government closure of two television channels, Diganta Television and Islamic TV, which were live telecasting the operation.

In early 2013, Hefajat-e Islam emerged as a pressure group composed of madrassah teachers and students, led by Shah Ahmad Shafi, rector of Hathazari Madrasah. The group became particularly active after allegations surfaced that some protesters in the Shahbag protests were involved in the publishing of content offensive to Muslims on blogs, including the depiction of Muhammad as a pornographic character. On 6 April 2013, its supporters made a long-march to promote their 13-point charter, which included:

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