Several Bangladeshi youth have gone to Pakistan to undergo training to become terrorists. This revelation was made in a news report by Ekkator TV on Friday (19th July).
As per the Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU), the accused Bangladeshis joined the camps of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and 9 other proscribed terrorist outfits.
TTP, which is responsible for the 2014 Peshawar school massacre, is now spreading its wings in Bangladesh. Based on intelligence about its activities, ATU has arrested one Mohammed Faisal on 2nd July from Savar in Dhaka district.
During the interrogation, Faisal told ATU that he and his aide Zubair were inspired by the ideology of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The duo travelled to Pakistan via Saudi Arabia in September 2024, i.e. within a month of the undemocratic ouster of Sheikh Hasina.
Mohammed Faisal informed that his aide, Zubair, was killed during military action in Waziristan. He returned to Bangladesh via Dubai in November 2024 after undergoing training in Pakistan.
10 terror outfits trying to make inroads in Bangladesh
As per the Anti-Terrorism Unit, a Muslim youth named Al Imran has claimed to be the chief of the Bangladesh unit of TTP.
He had encouraged Mohammed Faisal, Rezal Karim Abrar, Asif Adnan, Zackaria Masood, Mohammed Salam to take part in jihad. The ATU had booked 6 of them under the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2009.
Interrogation of Mohammed Faisal has also led to the arrest of Shamin Mahfooz, the chief of the banned Jama’atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya. Mahfooz also has ties with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The Anti-Terrorism Unit in Bangladesh has pointed out that a total of 10 Islamic terror outfits are trying to make inroads in the country. These include
- Shahadat-e al Hiqma
- Jama’at Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB)
- Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB)
- Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami Bangladesh (HuJI-B)
- Hizb ut-Tahrir (Bangladesh)
- Ansarullah Bangla Team
- Ansar al-Islam
- Allah’r Dal
- Jama’atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya
- Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)
Rise of Islamism in Bangladesh under Muhammad Yunus
Bangladesh is gradually descending into the jaws of Islamism under the watch of ‘chief advisor’ to the interim government, Muhammad Yunus.
The situation is so grim that comparisons are being made with the Taliban rule, and genuine fears are being expressed about the country turning into Afghanistan.
After coming to power, Muhammad Yunus first revoked the ban on the radical Islamist outfit ‘Jamaat-e-Islami.’ Thereafter, he released the leader of the radical outfit ‘Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT)’ Muhammad Jasimuddin Rahmani.
At the same time, Muhammad Yunus downplayed the targeted attacks on the Hindu community by violent Muslim mobs. He has gone on record from lamenting about attacks on Hindus to saying that the claims of atrocities are ‘exaggerated‘.
In that way, the controversial US asset was able to placate Islamic extremists. Given that Awami Legaue was against Islamism, the interim government first banned its student wing ‘Chhatra League,’ and then the parent party.
Under the watch of Muhammad Yunus, Bangladesh saw a drastic rise in vigilante Muslim mobs, which unleashed violence under the pretext of protecting the tenets of Islam.
These mobs were largely unorganised and called themselves ‘Tawhidi Janata (meaning Revolutionary People).’ They came under the spotlight over acts of vandalism and harassment of people.
The Yunus regime introduced new textbooks for primary and secondary students, which falsely claimed that the first declaration of independence of Bangladesh was made by Ziaur Rehman (a favourite icon of Muslim hardliners in Bangladesh).
The interim government also appointed a Hizb ut-Tahrir terrorist named Mohammad Azaz as the administrator for the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC).
The situation had become so grim that Bangladeshi ambassador to Morocco Mohammad Harun Al Rashid was forced to slam the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government in a scathing Facebook post in March 2025.
