Saturday, January 2, 2016, Poush 19, 1422 BS, Rabiul Awal 20, 1437 Hijri


Country still under threat of heightened militancy 
Year ends with zero tolerance shown to extremists
Mamunur Rashid
Published :Saturday, 2 January, 2016,  Time : 12:00 AM  View Count : 9

Militancy waned at the end of the year in Bangladesh, which launched a "zero tolerance" campaign against outlawed Islamist extremists.  But the country's top intelligence and law enforcing agencies are doubtful of the efficacy of the measure.
The law enforcing agencies said they were showing "zero tolerance" to militancy in the country, but militancy showed its power with the killing of bloggers, publishers, foreign nationals, bomb attacks on mosques of Muslim sects and targeting Christian priests across the country last year.    Instead, they said militant outfits which had been operating under different names are now not only active but regrouping for further assaults as the year draws near to a close - leaving the country still under threats of heightened militancy. Crime experts in the country told the daily Observer that they are concerned that highly educated youths are getting involved in militancy. Not only this, many of them come from eminent families of the society and are students of well-known educational institutions. Earlier, only uneducated people with Madrasa background were involved in militancy in the country.
Investigators suspect that separate "sleeper cells" of the banned militant organizations were behind the killing of Bangladesh-born US citizen writer and blogger Avijit Roy and Niladri Chattopadhya Niloy, Ananta Bijoy Das and Washiqur Rahman last year. But they have no idea who recruited and trained these members.  No significant headway was made in the investigation of the sensational killings of the bloggers.
Police are still in the dark about the killing of Faisal Arefin Dipan of Jagriti Prokashani at Aziz Supermarket in Shahbagh and critically injuring of Shuddhoswar's Ahmedur Rashid Tutul and two bloggers Ranadipam Basu and Tareque Rahim in the capital's Lalmatia area on October 31. 
Detectives Branch (DB) of police is conducting the investigation into the sensational cases.
Two members of banned Islamist militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) have been killed during a raid conducted by the members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in Bhogrha area in Gazipur on December 28. The deceased are Mahbub and Minhaz. A person has been killed in a suicide bomb attack at an Ahmadiyya mosque during Jumma prayers at Chakpara village under Bagmara upazila in Rajshahi on December 25.
The Detective Branch (DB) of police says three top militants of banned JMB are among seven people arrested and seized "a sack-full" of improvised grenades and suicide vests during a raid from the six-storey building at Shah Ali area in Mirpur 1 of Dhaka on December 24.
Indian National Investigation Agency (NIA) says that the JMB, a banned terrorist organization, remains active, dangerous and able to deploy suicide bombers despite the decimation of its ranks over the last seven years.  DMP Joint Commissioner (DB) Monirul Islam told, "Most of the Bangla Team members are bloggers and they are experts in information technology."
"Political, social, and economical reasons are said to be behind the educated youth's involvement. Besides, these youths have no relation with the Bengali culture and this is the main reason of becoming militants. They get involved in militancy while studying religion through internet," said crime analysts.









Editor : Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury
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