Author: Asraful Huq
Publication: The Independent
Date: December 4, 2005
URL: http://independent-bangladesh.com/news/dec/04/04122005ts.htm
Some militant groups are using kindergarten schools as camouflage to base their campaigns: Bomb recovered in Feni, panic at Sherpur
Some militant groups are using the kindergarten schools across the country as camouflage to base their campaign for jihad to establish what they call 'rule of Allah' by abolishing the existing laws of the land.
The groups have taught the students of the kindergartens about jihad to motivate them to be jihadi.
Agencies say, the banned militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) yesterday threatened to blow up Islamic University in Kushtia, Independent University Bangladesh (IUB) in the city, Habiganj and Rajbari Government High Schools and Noakhali Companiganj VVTC School.
Following the threat fear gripped the teachers, students and staff in those institutions.
Panic also gripped Mymensingh as a rumour of finding bomb in Mukul Niketon School spread in the town.
An anonymous telephone caller yesterday threatened to blow up the Independent University Bangladesh (IUB) with bombing.
University sources said, the caller telephoned to the operator of the administrative building of the university at about 8 AM saying that the university building located at House 3 of Road 10 at Baridhara in Gulshan will be blown off through bombing at any time of the day.
After receiving the bomb threat Assistant Registrar of the university Monzurul Haque filed a general diary with Gulshan Thana in this connection.
Meanwhile, as part of the on-going massive drives against the Islamic militants the law enforcers arrested some 32 suspected militants from seven districts of the country.
A highly placed source in Detective Branch (DB) told The Independent they came to know that the Islamist groups are using kindergarten schools as their den where they train militants on how to handle sophisticated arms and produce bombs.
The intelligence agencies have suspected that some kindergartens in Gazipur are involved in militancy because a treasurer of a kindergarten at Boardbazar in Tongi is an accused of the August 17 cross-country bombings.
Gazipur police arrested Rezaul Huq, a teacher of a kindergarten, following the statement of Mamun who carried out bombings in Jhalakhati in which two senior district judges were killed. In his confessional statement Rezaul told police that he is a member of the suicide squad of the banned militant outfit Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), police sources said.
Ahle Hadith Andolon Bangladesh (AHAB) supremo Dr Asadullah Al Galib and JMB chief Shaikh Abdur Rahman visited Gazipur several times. Dr Galib was present in an inauguration function as chief guest of a five-storied kindergarten school at Gazipur town.
There are scores of kindergarten schools in the country and some are residential. Taking the opportunity the militants are easily residing in the schools from where they are conducting militancy across the country.
Some residential kindergartens at Gazipur are now under the strict vigilance of different intelligence agencies as the law enforcers suspect that scores of Islamic militants took shelter in the kindergartens and madrasa in the guise of students and teachers, police sources said.
Abdur Razzak who blasted the second suicide bomb in front of the gate of Deputy Commissioner's (DC) office at Gazipur in which one person was killed and 30 others injured, confessed to police that some 25 JMB suicide squad members are now in Gazipur.
But police suspected that the number of the JMB suicide squad members, who took shelter in the different madrasas and kindergartens in the guise of teachers and students, is more than 50.
Gazipur police are conducting block raids in different parts of the district to nab the JMB members.
Meanwhile, the law enforcers arrested some 32 suspected JMB cadres from Dinajpur, Comilla, Tangail, Brahmanbaria, Narayanganj, Rangamati and Chandpur yesterday.
Our Dinajpur correspondent reports: Police recovered a cocktail from a house at Dinajpur and arrested four suspected JMB members in this connection yesterday.
Police arrested Golam Ibne Mizan (23), Md Khorshed Alam (23), Abul Bashar Litu (20) and Md Abu Taher (50) from a house belonging to Mannan Chowdhury near Balubari mosque in the town in Dinajpur.
Our Comilla correspondent writes: Four suspected JMB cadres were arrested by police from different parts of the district on Friday night.
The arrested were identified as Jahangir, Alamgir, Abul Hasem and Billal Hossain.
Our Chapainawabganj correspondent writes: Police arrested four suspected JMB cadres, who are madrasa students, from railway station in the district town on Friday night. But police did not disclose their names on security ground.
Our Tangail correspondent reports: Eight persons were arrested by police from the district town for their suspected link with JMB on Friday night.
The arrested persons are Zahirul Huq (22), Al Amin (32), Nur Mohammad Khan (25), Monir Hossain (20), Abid Siddique (17), Masum Bin Azad (27), Mamun-ur-Rashid Mamun (36) and Soha Miah (25).
Our Bramhanbaria correspondent adds: Police arrested two persons for their suspected link with JMB from Ashuganj Bazar in the district yesterday. The arrested persons are Habibur Rahman and Asad.
Our Narayanganj correspondent reports: Detective Branch (DB) of police arrested two JMB cadres Joynal Abedin (30), Md Iahiya (22) from the court compound at around 3pm on Saturday with some religious books.
Our Rangamati correspondent reports: Police arrested Mohammad Ali (35), from Rangamati court building for his alleged link with JMB yesterday.
Our Chandpur Correspondent adds: Police arrested three suspected JMB members Mufti Ibrahim (35), Saiful Islam (18) and Russel (18) from different part of the district town.
BDNEWS Kushtia correspondent reports: Islamic University vice-chancellor Prof M Rafiqul Islam received the threat over telephone at 9 pm on Friday. The callers identified themselves as JMB members.
"We will blow off the Faculty of Theology as the teachers of Dawa Department are standing in the way of establishing Islam", the callers said.
Later, the same JMB members also threatened Mostafa Kamal, Dean of the Faculty of Theology and chairman of the Department of Law, Atiqur Rahman, over telephone.
In the wake of the threat the strict security measure was taken on the campus from Saturday morning but nothing was found from the university campus after conducting a massive search with metal detector.
Meanwhile, entry of outsiders to the campus was prohibited and students' identity cards are being checked before entry.
University vice-chancellor Prof Rafiqul Islam held a meeting with the provosts of five dormitories and deans of all faculties at Saturday noon. The meeting decided to deploy more law enforcers and to check the campus every day with metal detectors.
BDNEWS Habiganj correspondent reports: Headmaster Habibul Islam of the Habiganj Government High School on Saturday morning received a letter containing a threat to blow up the school.
The letter written in English bore the name of the sender as JMB. When the letter reached the school the annual examination was going on. Many students frightened left the school without attending the exam.
Following the threat the police was informed. Police rushed to the school and stepped up security there. At noon deputy commissioner MM Sultan Mahmud and high officials of the police administration visited the school.
Rajbari Government High School sources said student Najibullah Najib alerted the authorities when he found a wrapped letter in school veranda at about 9:00 am.
The two-line handwritten JMB letter, inscribed in Bangla and Arabic, also warned that two bombs were implanted the campus at noon.
The letter was later proved to be a hoax after officials, police and fire brigade personnel rushed to the spot, asked students to vacate the building and launched a hectic security search. But no bomb was found, except an abandoned food picket on rooftop of school building.
After the incident, police tightened security in the district town and deployed additional law enforcers in strategic areas.
BDNEWS Noakhali correspondent reports: The banned JMB threatened to blow up the Charhazari VVTC School of Companiganj.
The threat was issued in a letter recovered from a room of the school on Saturday morning.
The letter said within the next one month the Village Vocational Training Centre will be demolished and its teachers and students killed.
Principal of the VVTC Harun-ur-Rashid told BDNEWS, following the threat panic has gripped the students, teachers and staff of the school. Many students left the school in fear and teachers are also frightened to take the classes, he added.
Companiganj thana sub-inspector (SI) Md Yasin said, the matter is being looked into seriously and Zahirul Islam, SI, has already been assigned.
In the face of relentless threat, Law enforcers have been deployed at every strategic point including government buildings, banks, industries and factories in the town to avert any untoward incidents.
Report from Feni says: A powerful time bomb was recovered from a high school, on the outskirts of the town, on Saturday morning.
School authority said peon of Sonapur High School Abdul Qader found the bomb under a chair when he went to clean the room of headmaster at about 9am and informed headmaster Mir Hossain.
On receiving information, police rushed to the spot and recovered the bomb, wrapped with red scotch tape. They took the bomb to the police station later.
Meanwhile, a bomb panic swept across Sherpur after newspapers Saturday reported of possible bomb attacks by suicide squads of outlawed Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB).
Local residents said that tension spread following reports that a group of JMB activists had left the capital in a microbus and ambulance to commit bomb attacks in several districts including Sheprur.
Police Super Nibas Chandra Majhi said the district administration deployed security check posts at every entrance and crossing points of the town.
He said the 44-km border areas with India had also been sealed off after receiving news on possible bomb attacks.
Deputy Commissioner MAN Siddique said security arrangements of the town have been tightened and special check posts put up to search ambulances and other vehicles.