New JMB recruitment continues

Police repeatedly claim that they have successfully weakened the outfit, cutting down its capacity to carry out subversive activities to almost zero. In spite of continuous police drives killing one after another top leader in "crossfire," the New JMB continues recruiting new members as well as building/amassing new stockpile of arms, said concerned sources. Investigation officials yesterday told the Dhaka Tribune that decentralising the operational activities, the outfit is now creating small dens in the country’s six divisions to carry out further terrorist attacks. They are also trying to build a huge stockpile of arms. Informing that recently arrested members of New JMB revealed such information during interrogation, they said that they were now investigating how operatives of those small dens link up with one another. Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit chief Monirul Islam yesterday told the Dhaka Tribune over the phone: “Although we have successfully destroyed the organisational structure of New JMB and a most of their top leaders are already arrested or killed, but that does not necessarily mean that all is well.” Informing that CTCC is trying to trace the remaining absconding leaders their new dens, he said: “Four recently arrested New JMB men who supply arms to the outfit told interrogators that a nine member special squad collect arms to supply to the outfit.” The squad members, who collect arms and explosives from India and smuggle into Bangladesh were identified as Mizanur Rahman alais Big Mizan, Mizanur alias Choto Mizan, two Mizan’s assocaite Rabiul, Jeltu and Laltu, militant Sagor, New JMB operational commander Nurul Islam Marjan, Rajib Gandhi and Sohel Mahfuz. Manirul said: “Save these nine arms collectors and suppliers, there are some mid-level New JMB leaders who had left Bangladesh after July 1 Gulshan attack are also working to strengthen the militant outfit’s counter attacking capacity. Of them, four were identified as Sohel Mahfuz, Shariful Islam, Mamunur Rashid Ripon, and so called ‘big brother’ Junayed Khan.” Meanwhile, Sanowar Hossain, additional deputy commissioner of CTTC, yesterday afternoon told the Dhaka Tribune: “The New JMB used to collect arms by their own syndicate. We have succeeded tracing their activities and are working on it.” The outfit’s initial plan was to decentralise their operational activities by forming divisional headquarters, appointing divisions’ chiefs, but it was suspended later in face of continuous countrywide drives of law enforcers, Sanowar said, adding that presently, the outfit has stronghold in North Bengal, especially in Thakurgaon, Gazipur, Narayanganj, Chapainawabganj, Gaibandha, Rajshahi and Pabna. Absconding alleged militants Marjan and Rajib Gandhi reportedly are leading the reorganising activities. Sanowar said: “We are yet to trace New JMB’s spiritual leader, mentioned as Abu Ibrahim al-Hanif by the Islamic State as chief of the Bangladesh chapter of IS.” Mentionable, in a rare standoff between two law enforcing agencies Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Police, the elite force on October claimed that New JMB’s key financier Abdur Rahman, who died after jumping off a five-storey building in Ashulia 8, was the outfit’s chief, Abdullah Abu Ibrahim al-Hanif. But the CTTC officials investigating the Gulshan attack case categorically rejected RAB’s claim just the following day saying that Abdur Rahman was none but a lower level leader of the New JMB. Regarding Abu al-Hanif, ADC Sanowar said the person Hanif is not basically an active member of the outfit. "We are trying to trace his location to bring him to book."