An elite wing of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police arrested seventeen members of banned terrorist outfit Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen (JMB) from city’s Kakrail area on Monday evening.
Talking to the Bangladesh Post on Tuesday, Deputy Commissioner (Media and Public Relation) of DMP Masudur Rahman confirmed the arrests.
The arrestees have been primarily identified as Md Sheikh Arafat alias Johnny, 48, Md Imrul Hasan alias Emon, 25, Md Saiful Islam, 25, Md Mozammel Haque, 33, Md Shahjalal, 34, Md Akhtaruzzaman, 30, Md. Mahmudul Hasan alias Sabbir, 23, Md Abid ul Mahmud alias Abid, 22, Md Sohail Sardar, 33, Md Obaidul Islam alias Sumon, 30, Mahmud Hasan alias Sharif, 18, M Majedul Islam alias Mukul, 28, Md Sohag Hasan, 20, Md Haider Ali, 44, Md Mahmudul Hasan alias Masum, Md Jamirul Islam, 24 and Md Billal Hossain, 38.
Masudur claimed that in the guise of Tabligh Jamaat, the arrested JMB militants were repeatedly attempting to meet Imam Mahadi, a militant leader, currently living in Saudi Arabia.
Officials of the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC), which led the anti-militant drive, told that they also seized nineteen mobile phones, Tk 234,000, and $922 from their possessions.
Towhidul Islam, additional deputy commissioner (ADC) of the CTTC, who himself was present during the operation said, “During primary grilling, the arrested militants admitted that they were directly involved with the terrorists’ organization- JMB.”
He further said, “In 2016, Syed Mostaq bin Arman, an engineer by profession left Bangladesh for Saudi Arabia. He is still staying there. He has released audio and video speeches and calling for jihad on behalf of Imam Mahdi.”
The CTTC official said, earlier Mostaq was also involved in various militants organizations, including Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind.
Inspired by his radical ideology, the arrestees contacted him and prepared to join in terrorist activities.
They contacted each other in mid-March and later decided to go to Saudi Arabia to join him.
ADC Towhid claimed that the arrestees were in regular and direct contacts with fugitive Mostaq.
In the guise of Tabligh Jamaat, they at first planned to reach Saudi Arabia by road, crossing the border at Satkhira or Benapole. Later they would cross the Indian border at Kashmir, he added.
Another senior CTTC official said, the arrested terrorists believed that the coronavirus epidemic would bring down wrath from the sky, smoldering everything, leaving no guards at the borders to stop them.
They also believed that the sun would not rise for the next 40 days, the sky would be covered with smoke, the infidels would all die, but the believers would have only a light cough.
They used mosques in Satkhira and Jessore for accommodation during their journey.
But they failed to cross the borders at Satkhira and Jessore due to security.
Then they planned to cross the border at Sylhet, travelling through the capital Dhaka.
The CTTC official said that they have secret information that four students of Mymensingh Agricultural University left for Umrah in January. But they never returned.
Arrested militants disclosed that many other militants including Ghiyasuddin, Ali Azam, Rashed, Saad, Kawsar, Sharif and Tofazzal, left the country to join Mostaq in Saudi Arabia.
A case was filed against the arrestees with Ramna Model Police Station. They arrested were produced before a Dhaka Court seeking a ten-day remand for each.
