No one, however, was arrested in connection with the raid, and it once again remains unclear where the weapons came from and for whom they were intended. BDR sources suggest that the arms and ammunition were being stored temporarily in the forest hide-out prior to their being sent out to different parts of the country. It is also possible that the arms are connected to the unrest that continues in the CHT region. One downside of not apprehending anyone in connection with the seizure is that speculation will run rampant.

But one thing which is clear is that we cannot shut our eyes to the fact that there are too many unauthorised weapons in the country. The authorities seem adept enough at finding arms caches every once in a while, but not at either preventing the smuggling in of the weapons in the first place, or of apprehending those involved in the clandestine trade.

Many questions remain unanswered about this latest haul, as is the case with all the major hauls of the last few years, including the mammoth arms seizure last April in Chittagong. It has been reported that in the latest case, the criminals could not be nabbed due to lack of coordination between the army, BDR, and police, and it seems as though the first step which needs to be taken might be better coordination between these entities.

This latest seizure reminds us that we still have not got to the bottom of the April arms haul and that when weapons are seized like this, invariably no one is held accountable. We hope that this latest incident impresses on the authorities the urgent need to redouble their efforts to apprehend those who are behind the arms trade and those who are the recipients of the arms. This is a serious problem which cannot be swept under the carpet.