Islamist Terrorism: Timeline (Terrorist Activities) -2021

Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) on January 1 arrested two cadres of banned militant outfit Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) from ShahbajpurUttarpar area in Brahmanbaria District of Chittagong Division, reports The Daily Star. The arrested are Mohammad Yahiya (22) and Hujaifa Saad (20). RAB recovered documents on extremism including two books, two scripts, four leaflets as well as two cell phones and three pages of printed short messages from them. Read less...

Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU), a specialized wing of Bangladesh Police, arrested a cadre of banned militant outfit Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) from Dadra village in Joypurhat District of Rajshahi Division on January 2, reports UNB. The arrestee is Mohamad Mujibur Rahman (48). One mobile phone set and a large quantity of documents related to militancy, extremism books and booklets were recovered from his possession. Read less...

A study, “The Symbiotic Relationship between Media and Terrorism,” presented at a webinar on January 3 revealed that media unknowingly propagates militancy, reports Dhaka Tribune. It observed that militant outfits tend to use the media tactically to spread their messages and the media sometimes serve the purpose unknowingly by simply publishing news of militancy through exaggerating details. It further observed that newspapers are committed to publishing the truth but sometimes violate the principles of journalism by publishing ‘thrilling’ news or engaging in unhealthy competition. Moreover, the media’s attempt to dramatize, use of detailed description of events, and unwanted adjectives to stir up readers’ feelings, and fabricated or speculative interpretations of premature news have harmed society and moved readers, leading them to a different direction, according to the study. Dhaka University Mass Communication and Journalism Associate Professor Shabnam Azim presented the study on the first day of a three-day webinar that began on January 3. Read less...

Bangladesh on January 13 strongly protested against "baseless remarks and falsification" by US Secretary of State Michael R Pompeo tagging Bangladesh with terrorist group al-Qaeda, reports The Independent. In his statement, Pompeo on January 12 mentioned Bangladesh as a place where the terrorist group al-Qaeda carried out attacks, falsely apprehending similar terrorist attacks in future. "Such irresponsible comment by a senior leader is very unfortunate and unacceptable. Our track record in countering terrorism has earned us global appreciation. Bangladesh considers that the US Secretary of State’s referring to Bangladesh as a possible location for al-Qaeda operations, is indeed unfounded and offers no evidence. However, if such a statement is made out of speculation, Bangladesh considers it very unfortunate, especially in the context of the ever-growing bilateral ties between the two friendly countries based on shared values, peace and common goals," said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a protest note. Read less...

In a virtual meet of Police Chiefs of India and Bangladesh emphasis was laid on enhancing counter-terrorism cooperation especially against global terror groups, siasat.com reports on January 13. As a step towards that, designated ‘nodal points’ would be established for timely and effective handling and response to existing as well as emerging security and counter-terrorism challenges. In the first delegation-level virtual Police Chiefs’ Dialogue both sides agreed to enhance cooperation against terrorist entities including global terrorist groups, as well as other fugitives, wherever they are present and active. Both sides also reiterated the need for sharing real time intelligence and feedback through the designated ‘nodal points’, while appreciating each other’s ongoing action against insurgent groups operating in the region. “The scope of enhanced coordination to combat trans-border criminal activities, including smuggling of drugs, Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN), arms and ammunition and human trafficking was also discussed,” the statement from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) said. Read less...

In the first Delegation-Level virtual Police Chiefs’ Dialogue between the Police chiefs of India and Bangladesh held on January 12 Bangladesh and India Police agreed to enhance their work jointly against terrorist entities, including the Global Terrorist Groups, as well as other fugitives wherever they are present and active, reports Dhaka Tribune. “During the virtual dialogue, the police chiefs of both the countries reiterated the need for sharing of real time intelligence and feedback through the designated ‘nodal points’, while appreciating each other’s ongoing action against insurgent groups operating in the region,” said a press release. During the discussion, the meeting decided to strengthen the existing ties of the Police forces of the two neighboring countries. The scope of enhanced coordination to combat trans-border criminal activities, including smuggling of drugs, Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN), arms and ammunition and human trafficking was also came up in the discussion. Read less...

Nine active members were surrendered on January 14 to law enforcement, paving the way for them to live a normal life, reports Dhaka Tribune. They surrendered before Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and Inspector General of Police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed at an event at Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) headquarters. After their surrender, the Home Minister handed the former militants to their respective families. Among those who surrendered, six were former Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) operatives while the rest were from Ansar Al Islam. Read less...

The Anti-Terrorism Unit of Police on January 17 launched an awareness video and television commercials to prevent online-based extremism, reports New Age. Inspector General of Police Benazir Ahmed launched the video and TV commercials as the chief guest at a function at Rajarbagh Police Lines in Dhaka city. During the programme, the Police chief asked the youths to inform the law enforcement authorities if anyone influenced them to take the path of extremism. He said that social media remained a hotbed for extremism propaganda and therefore every unit of Bangladesh Police has continued cyber patrolling. ‘Police are working towards a goal of uprooting extremists and we have to be vigilant until the last extremist is wiped out,’ Benazir said. Read less...

Information Minister Hasan Mahmud on January 18 said Al-Qaeda has no presence in Bangladesh as claimed in a “thoughtless remark” by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, reports The Independent. “Our Foreign Ministry has strongly protested against the remark. It’s unfortunate when such thoughtless statements come from the secretary of state of a country like the USA,” he told reporters during a briefing at the Secretariat. Read less...

Chief of Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), Mohamad Monirul Islam on January 19 said a hard-and-soft approach needs to be applied to control militancy, reports Dhaka Tribune. “Militancy cannot be contained just by enforcing law. It requires a hard-and-soft approach to control militancy," he said while addressing a seminar. The seminar – on the role of Islamic scholars in preventing violence and extremism – was jointly organized by the Islamic Foundation and the CTTC at the Islamic Foundation auditorium in Dhaka. Read less...

Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in a raid arrested two cadres of banned extremist outfit Allahor Dal from Merirhat Bazar of Gaibandha District in Rangpur Division on January 28, reports New Age. The arrested were identified as Mohamad Abdul Alim Mandal (42) and Mohamad Shafiul Islam (28). RAB recovered jihadi books, leaflets and a mobile phone set from them. Read less...