Neo JMB chief Akash dead, confirms Home Minister
Eleven suspected militants were killed in separate operations conducted by the law enforcement agencies including police and Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in Gazipur and Tangail districts on Saturday. In Gazipur: Acting on a tip-off, a team of Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit, Special Weapon and Tactics Team (SWAT) and district police launched an operation at a den in a two-storey building in Patartek area in Gazipur around 12:00am.
Later at a press briefing Home Minister Assaduzzaman Khan said, “The law enforcers first asked the militants to surrender but they didn't respond to their call. Then they opened fire on the militants who also fired back. The three-hour gunfight left seven militants dead.” The seven ‘militants' included Neo JMB military commander Akash and four madrassha students, the minister said. He said the operations have been successful as common people came forward to help the law enforcers.
Earlier, two alleged militants Tawhidul Islam, 22, and Rashedul Islam, 22, were killed in a reported gunfight during a raid on a ‘militant den' by members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in Harinal area of the city in the morning. Assistant superintendent of police Mahiul Islam, deputy director of Rab's Porabari camp, said a team of the elite force cordoned off a one-storey building, owned by Ataur Rahman early in the morning following information that it was being used as a militant den.
When the law enforcers tried to enter the building, the militants opened fire on them, prompting them to retaliate that triggered a gun battle. Half an hour after the gunfight, the elite force recovered the bodies of Tawhidul and Rashedul from the house. They also recovered one AK-22 rifle, one pistol, 70 bullets and some bomb-making explosive substances and a laptop from the den, Mahiul Islam added. In Tangail: Two alleged militants were killed in a joint operation by police and Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in Kagmara area of the district town in the morning.
The deceased could not yet be identified immediately after the operation. Acting on a tip-off that a gang of militants is there at a house in Kagmara area, a team of joint force conducted a drive there around 11:00pm, said Mahbub Alam, superintendent of Tangail police. Sensing the presence of law enforcers, the militants opened fire on them. As the law enforcers retaliated, it triggered a gunfight, leaving the two ‘militants' dead on the spot and two others wounded.
