New Year Celebrations: JMB's 'attack plan foiled'

Police have arrested five suspected members of Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh who were allegedly collecting explosives to carry out attacks in Dhaka during New Year celebrations.

The arrests were made in the capital's Darus Salam area on Tuesday evening when the suspects were carrying around 30kg of explosives in their bags to make bombs at a safe house, Monirul Islam, chief of Counter Terrorism unit of DMP, told a news briefing yesterday.

The police did not say anything about the target spots of the suspects.

The arrestees -- Md Riaz alias Engineer alias Rakib, Md Abubin Sayem alias Bappi alias Opu, Kazi Abdullah Al Osman alias Ahsan, Md Sohag alias Chairman and Md Mamun alias Himel -- are Ehsar or full-time members of the “Old JMB”, according to police.

This is the first time in months that law enforcers learned about a planned attack by the members of JMB. It was believed that the JMB was busy collecting funds for the organisation through robbery and planning ambushes on police and jail guards to free their arrested leaders, sources said.

The arrests and the seizure came days after the police had busted a “Neo JMB” den in Ashkona during which a female JMB member killed herself and seriously injured her four-year-old daughter detonating a suicide vest. A 14-year-old suspect was also killed during the operation, while two female militant suspects surrendered with their two children.

The “Neo JMB,” a faction of the outlawed JMB that follows the ideologies of terror organisation IS, was responsible for the worst-ever militant attack in Bangladesh at a Gulshan café on July 1.

A CT official asking not to be named claimed that the JMB's Rajshahi region leaders Zia, Hayder and Sahidullah were the key planners of the attack that was to be carried out during New Year's celebrations.

“We suspect the three names are organisational but hope to get more information from the five arrestees after interrogating them,” added the official.

During the briefing at DMP's media centre, Monirul also said they had learned about the five arrestees from another gang arrested in the capital with money and gold ornaments they had robbed.

He said the leader of the robbers was one Reaz alias Zinia alias Rakib, who had recently visited India and met Salauddin alias Salehin, chief of the “Old JMB”. Rakib started organising the group in Bangladesh with instruction from Salehin, he added.

The CT chief also said many “Old JMB” members were joining the “Neo JMB”.

Referring to Shakira, who killed herself detonating her suicide vest in Ashkona, Monirul said her husband, “Old JMB” member Rashedur Rahman alias Sumon, was arrested on October 17 in the city with six other “Old JMB's” gang of robbers.q