Jama’atul Ansar Ameer Held in Munshiganj

Today's morning raid in Munshiganj's Louhajang, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) detained three persons, including the ameer of the recent armed organization Jama'atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya.

The information was verified by Commander Khandaker Al Moin, head of RAB's legal and media division.

He said that three members of Jama'atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya, including Ameer Md Anisur Rahman alias Mahmud, had been detained. The other two's names have not yet been revealed. 

During this period, weapons from domestic and foreign sources, bomb-making supplies, extremist literature, and money were taken from their possession.

The RAB representative stated that the information will be disclosed at a news conference scheduled for Monday at 11:30 a.m. at the RAB media center in the capital's Kawran Bazar.

The armed group Jama'atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya was founded in 2017 with support from the now-waning banned militant outfits, which are accountable for hundreds of deadly attacks in the previous 30 years. The group is billed as an initiative to free the imprisoned spiritual leaders of militant groups and Islamic clerics.

According to law enforcement, Jama'atul Ansar established itself in 2019. Two years later, the militants were instructed in the use of assault weapons and the creation of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) by the leaders of the Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF), a separatist organization in Bandarban.

In October 2022, while the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) was looking into the disappearance of seven young people from Comilla, the activities of Jama'atul Ansar were discovered. Later, a list of 55 trainees was found, the majority of them were students from all around the nation.

Since then, the majority of Jama'atul Ansar and KNF commanders and trained members have been detained during operations by the combined forces, police RAB, and Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crimes (CTTC) in the highlands. Additionally, Cox's Bazar Rohingya camps were searched by law enforcement, and two important Jama'atul Ansar officials were detained.