« Hamas Summit in Moscow a Failure |
| Norway: Mosque Vigilantes In Custody »
March 6, 2006
Bangladesh: Bangla Bhai, Islamist Terror Leader, Is Captured
News from the BBC states that Bangla Bhai (pictured) the leader of JMJB, and also a top operative in terror group Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), has been captured alive in Bangladesh's Mymensingh district, in the north of the country.
This morning at around 7.20 am local time (1.20 am GMT) Bangla Bhai was arrested. Security officers from RAB (Rapid Action Battalion) had surrounded the hideout of Bangla Bhai, or Siddiqul Islam, at Muktagacha village, 70 miles north of Dhaka, the capital.
Those inside the house threw bombs and fired at the security forces, leading to a shoot-out. Bangla Bhai was injured by an explosive device he had detonated, leading to loss of blood and burn and splinter injuries.
He was flown to a paramilitary hospital, where his condition was assessed as not life-threatening.
Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (Vigilant Muslim Citizens, Bangladesh) came to public notice in 2004, when in April 2004, it began the slaughter and torture of the banned Purbo Banglar Communist Party in the northwestern regions of Bangladesh. These killings of "Sarbaharas" appeared to have been sanctioned by local police, and also the Bangladesh National Party (BNP), the leading player in the coalition government.
In May 2004 Bangla Bhai held a press conference in the district of Rajshahi. With him was Abdur Rahman, the leader of JMB. Bangla Bhai revealed that his group, JMJB, had been active for six years prior to their public appearance.
Bangladeshi human rights group Taskforce Against Torture states that about 500 cases of killing and torture had been carried out by Bangla Bhai and his followers, often with the complicity of the police.
Bangla Bhai, a former school-teacher, will now be subjected to intense questioning. On Monday, February 21, Bangla Bhai and Abdur Rahman, head of JMB, were both given 40 years jail sentences in absentia by a court in Barisal for their part in the murder of two judges in Jhalakathi on November 14 last year.
Abdur Rahman was finally captured on March 2 and has since spent four days in continuous interrogation.
According to Xinhua News, the capture of Bangla Bhai has been met with celebration. In northern Mymensingh, where 18 people were killed in cinema bomb blasts three years ago, people danced in the streets.
The information leading to the arrest had come from Bangla Bhai's wife, who had been arrested with two other militants from JMB on Sunday night in Mymensingh town. She in turn had been arrested following information gleaned from Abdur Rahman's interrogation.
The bomb which wounded Bangla Bhai also blew off the tin roof of the house.
Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at March 6, 2006 7:22 AM
Comments
Post a comment
Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out)
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)