Recent Appearances...

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Recent Appearances...

Mufti Hannan	Mufti Hannan	Harkatul Jihad al Islami	Bangladesh	20060326	Link
	Mufti Hannan	Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh	Bangladesh	20060101	Link
	Mufti Hannan	Harkatul Jihad	Bangladesh	20051206	Link

Bangladesh

Five suspected militants held in Dhaka

2021-03-07

[DhakaTribune] The suspects belong to a banned Islamist outfit, says the Anti-Terrorism Unit

Police in Dhaka have arrested five people for their suspected involvement with a banned bully boy outfit.

The Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU) made the arrests during raids at the Farmgate and Mohammadpur areas in Dhaka.

Suspects Sheikh Kamal Hossain, Sohel Rana, AB Ahmed Pajlu, Khalequzzaman and Maniruzzaman belong to the group ’Allah'r Dal’.

ATU Superintendent of Police (SP) Md Aslam Khan told the media that Kamal and Shohel were held from Farmgate’s Tezturi Bazar neighbourhood on Wednesday evening.

Kamal is the outfit's second-in-command, he said before adding that the rest were arrested during raids at Sher-e-Bangla Road area in Katasur later the same night.

During the raids, 12 mobile phone sets, some credit cards, receipts of inmates and Tk37,062 were seized from their possession.

Afterwards, an anti-terrorism case was filed in this connection.

Allah'r Dal was formed in 1995 under the leadership of Matin Mehedi alias Mominul Islam, and in late 2004, the outfit merged with banned bully boy organization Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB).

On November 5, 2019, the government banned Allahr Dal, describing it as a threat to public safety.

Link

Bangladesh

Arrested HujiB leader met Osama bin Laden

2019-10-03

...a minor Pashtun commander in the war against the Soviets who made good as leader of the Taliban. As ruler of Afghanistan, he took the title Leader of the Faithful. The imposition of Pashtunkhwa on the nation institutionalized ignorance and brutality in a country already notable for its own fair share of ignorance and brutality. Died of an unspecified ailment in a Pak hospital...
, and Ayman al-Zawahiri
...Formerly second in command of al-Qaeda, now the head cheese, occasionally described as the real brains of the outfit. Formerly the Mister Big of Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Bumped off Abdullah Azzam with a car boom in the course of one of their little disputes. Is thought to have composed bin Laden's fatwa entitled World Islamic Front Against Jews and Crusaders. Currently residing in the North Wazoo area assuming he's not dead like Mullah Omar. He lost major face when he ordered the nascent Islamic State to cease and desist and merge with the orthodox al-Qaeda spring, al-Nusra...
, according to police.

Bin Laden, who ordered the September 11 attacks in 2001, was killed by US forces during a raid in Abbottabad
... A pleasant city located only 30 convenient miles from Islamabad. The city is noted for its nice weather and good schools. It is the site of Pakistain's military academy, which was within comfortable walking distance of the residence of the late Osama bin Laden....
, Pakistain, in May 2011.

On Wednesday evening, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit picked up Atiqullah, alias Asadullah, alias Zulfiqar, 49, and two of his associates, Mohammad Borhan Uddin Rabbani, 42, and Mohammad Nazim Uddin, alias Shamim, 43, from a playground near Boro Mosque in Nikunja 2.

During interrogation, Atiqullah told them about his meetings with bin Laden and other krazed killer leaders and his ties to al-Qaeda, according to CTTC sources.

Informed that several HuJIB men had gathered at a playground for a secret meeting, a CTTC team conducted a raid there, said Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Deputy Commissioner (Media) Masudur Rahman,on Thursday.

He also said Atiqullah was an organizing secretary of the committee of HuJIB formed by Mufti Hannan in 1996, and was later assigned to oversee the Baitul Mal and International Relations Department of the organization.

CTTC sources said that during the tenure of the last caretaker government, he went into hiding in Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
and visited Pakistain multiple times for krazed killer activities.

in primary interrogation, police learned that Atiqullah has connections with krazed killer groups in other countries, including Pakistain, United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, sources at the CTTC said.

A CTTC official related to the investigation said Atiqullah also told police that he is a bomb specialist. After being exiled abroad for long, he returned to Bangladesh in March this year, and had been trying to contact old members of the krazed killer outfit to reorganize it.

He also had been trying to recruit new members to speed up HuJIB's activities in the upcoming days, he said.

The CTTC official said Atiqullah also made organizational visits to various places across the country, and raised money from both domestic and foreign sources, to mobilize the organization.

Najim, one of two other persons arrested besides Atiqullah, is a secretary of the HuJIB Dhaka Metropolitan South unit, while the other person arrested, Rabbani was given the responsibility of handling Feni district.

Recently, the three, Atiqullah, Najim, and Rabbani, were trying to reorganize the group, focusing on India's Kashmir
Kashmir

...a disputed territory lying between India and Pakistain. After partition, the Paks grabbed half of it and call it Azad (Free) Kashmir. The remainder they refer to as "Indian Occupied Kashmir". They have fought four wars with India over it, the score currently 4-0 in New Delhi's favor. After 72 years of this nonsense, India cut the Gordian knot in 2019, removing the area's special status, breaking off Ladakh as a separate state, and allowing people from other areas to settle (or in the case of the Pandits, to resettle) there....
and Rohingya issues, said the official.

DC Masudur Rahman said a case has been filed in this connection with Khilkhet cop shoppe under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

Link

Bangladesh

HujiB Jhenaidah military commander arrested

2017-04-30

[Dhaka Tribune] Rapid Action Battalion

(RAB) has tossed in the calaboose
You have the right to remain silent...
the Jhenaidah district unit military commander of banned Lion of Islam group Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami Bangladesh (HuJI
Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west.
B).

Abdul Alim, 50, son of late Azizul Islam from Satkhira, was picked up early Saturday.

He was a close aide of Mufti Hannan, the chief of a faction of the Lion of Islam outfit hanged recently, RAB said.

RAB 6 Jhenaidah Camp Commander Golam Morshed, also an assistant superintendent of police, said they had conducted raids at the district’s Hathgopalpur village in four teams.

They finally arrested Alim from in front a graveyard around 4am.

Later in the day, he was produced before a Chuadanga court amid tight security in a case filed under the Anti-Terrorism Act. The accused admitted planning sabotage in Chuadanga, Meherpur and Jhenaidah, RAB said.

After the July 1 Gulshan attack, Alim started organising a team consisting of 10 members in the region, the RAB official said.

Link

Bangladesh

RAB steps into 13th year

2017-03-26

[DhakaTribune] Rapid Action Battalion

(RAB), an elite team of Bangladesh Police, which was formed on March 26, 2004 and started its operations on April 14, 2004 with the motto ’Bangladesh Amar Ohonkar’ (Bangladesh is my pride) has stepped into 13th year today.

It consists of the members of Bangladesh Police, Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh Navy, Bangladesh Air Force, Border Guard Bangladesh and Bangladesh Ansar and VDP.

Despite having many controversies of crossfire, forced disappearance incidents, extrajudicial killings and arbitrary arrests, the force has achieved many successes in combating terrorism and militancy including the arrests of Mufti Hannan and Bangla Bhai.

Many rights organizations including Human Rights Watch have been repeatedly urging the government to ban the force alleging its involvement in unauthorised activities.

Preventing human trafficking and containing robbers of Sundarban are other two achievements in the force’s history.

Extra judicial act which was executed by RAB first came into spotlight after they shot Limon Hossain, a college student, in Jhalakathi on March 23, 2011.

In January 2017, 25 former RAB officials were found guilty in the sensational Seven Murder Case of Narayanganj. Total of 26 ex-RAB officials were awarded with death penalty and another nine received jail for seven to 17 years.

RAB Legal and Media Wing Director Mufti Mahmud Khan said: "People will evaluate our success. If the people face issues they come to RAB first. They think if they can reach us they will find quick remedy.

"We do not find any base of the controversy on crossfire and encounter. We caught different type of criminals during different drives. None of them faced crossfire. Crossfire and encounter take place when it is a must."

Link

Bangladesh

Mufti Hannan to seek clemency

2017-03-23

[Dhaka Tribune] Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami Bangladesh (HuJI
Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west.
B) leader Mufti Hannan will seek presidential pardon.

Hannan informed it to the Kashimpur Jail authorities when the full verdict was read out to him around 10:30am on Wednesday.

"Hannan has told us that he will file the petition seeking presidential clemency with due process through his lawyer," Mizanur Rahman, jail superintendent, told the Dhaka Tribune.

Another death-row convict Sharif Shahedul Alam, Hannan’s aide, would also seek clemency, he added.

The other convict is Md Delwar Hossain.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court’s Appellate Division released the full text of its verdict reconfirming death penalties handed to Mufti Hannan and two accomplices for a failed liquidation attempt on the then British high commissioner to Bangladesh Anwar Choudhury.

The full verdict reached to Kashimpur Jail on Tuesday night.

Three people were killed and Anwar sustained injuries in the grenade attack carried out during his visit to Shahjalal Shrine in Sylhet city on May 21, 2004.

The commissioner reported being hit in the stomach by a bomb, which then fell on the ground near the foot of the district chief and went kaboom! "with a big bang." Sixty-nine others were also injured.

The UK foreign secretary at the time, Jack Straw, said he was "deeply shocked" by the attack.

The HuJIB murderous Moslem group was formed in 1992 and claims to have carried out at least 14 attacks, killing more than 100 people in the pursuit of establishing Shariah Law in Bangladesh.

A Sylhet court in December 2008 sentenced the trio to death and two others to life-time imprisonment for their roles in the attack. The High Court upheld the sentences in February 2016.

The same month, the death-row convicts appealed to the Appellate Division but to no avail. Their review petitions filed challenging the Appellate Division verdict were also rejected.

Hannan was also sentenced to death for the 2001 Ramna Batamul bombing, in which ten people were killed.

Link

Bangladesh

Mufti Hannan jailbreak attempt fails

2017-03-07

[Dhaka Tribune] In movie-style high drama, an attempt was made to snatch Mufti Hannan, one of the biggest turban criminal masterminds, from police custody on Monday evening.

A prison convoy carrying bully boyz en route to Kashimpur Central Jail was attacked near College Gate in Tongi around 6pm by a lone bomber.

Tongi SP Harun-ar-Rashid confirmed that the would-be rescuer were tossed into the calaboose.

Mufti Hannan, a death row convict, was read out his death warrant earlier in February. He had also filed a review petition against the sentence.

According to Tongi OC Firoz Talukdar, when the prison convoy was passing through College Gate area, a young man attacked the van with a pair of crude bombs, which missed and went kaboom! harmlessly on the road.

A nearby traffic patrol was alerted by the kaboom. Rushing to the scene, they managed to capture the young man, who has since been identified as Mostofa Kamal, 25, from Mymensingh.

Mostofa has been captured with about a dozen crude bombs and Tk7,500 in cash. During his primary interrogation, he told the police that he was paid Tk10,000 to hurl the bombs at the prison van.

It has been confirmed that some of the prisoners on the van are close associates of Mufti Hannan, chief of a faction of Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami Bangladesh (HuJI
Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west.
B).

When contacted for further details, Senior Jail Superintendent Mizanur Rahman said four prisoners had been sent out to appear before a court on Monday.

Mizanur said: "Four vans had been despatched and all four have returned."

Asked whether Mufti Hannan or any of his associates were able to escape during the rescue attempt, Mizanur said they had all returned to the prison.

Mufti Hannan’s faction of HuJIB was allegedly involved in the August 21 bombing on an Awami League rally, the 2001 Ramna kabooms, the 1999 bombing on a cultural event of Udichi in Jessore and an attempt to assassinate the then British High Commissioner Anwar Choudhury in Sylhet in 2004.

He was sentenced to death for the death of three people in the attack on Bangladesh-origin envoy Anwar Choudhury. After his appeals were rejected by the High Court and the Appellate Division, the jail authorities read out the death warrant to him on February 6.

Earlier, Sherlocks had announced they had captured three bully boyz over the past two weeks from Dhaka who were planning to bust Mufti Hannan out of prison. Two were placed in durance vile
Please don't kill me!
from Mohammadpur on February 22 and one was seized from Shahjahanpur on March 1.

Authorities had also claimed that HuJIB was going to attempt to break Mufti Hannan out of jail before his execution.

The HuJIB has carried out at least 14 attacks in which over 100 people have been killed since its formation in 1992 with a view to establish Shariah Law in the country.

According to law enforcers, the plan was very similar to the one used to snatch three condemned JMB bully boyz from police custody in 2014 killing a police constable. Two of the bully boyz have since escaped to India but the third was recaptured within hours by the police.

The audacious rescue involved over two dozen bully boyz rushing the prison van in Trishal in Mymensingh.

Link

Bangladesh

SC upholds death penalty for Mufti Hannan, 2 others

2016-12-08

[Dhaka Tribune] The Supreme Court has upheld the death penalty handed down to three bully boyz of Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami (HuJI
Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west.
), including its chief Mufti Abdul Hannan in a case filed over the grenade attack on ex-British envoy to Bangladesh Anwar Choudhury in 2004.

A four-member bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice SK Sinha, passed the order on Wednesday morning.

The court rejected the appeal filed by Mufti Hannan and Sharif Shahedul Alam alias Bipul seeking a review of the High Court order, reports UNB.

Deputy Attorney General Bashir Ahmed said the condemned convicts can file a review petition within 30 days after getting the copy of the verdict.

Three people, including an assistant sub-inspector of the police, were killed while former UK high commissioner Anwar and 70 others were maimed in a grenade attack at the shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal in Sylhet on May 21, 2004.

Born in Sunamganj and a naturalised British citizen, Anwar served as the British high commissioner to Bangladesh from 2004 to 2008. He is currently serving as the ambassador to Peru.

Three bully boyz of the banned group ‐ Mufti Hannan, Sharif Shahedul Alam Bipul and Md Delwar Hossain alias Ripon ‐ were sentenced to death while two others ‐ Hannan’s brother Muhibullah alias Muhibur Rahman alias Ovi and Mufti Mainuddin Khaja alias Abu Jandal ‐ were given life sentences by the Sylhet Divisional Speedy Trial Tribunal on December 23, 2008.

The High Court upheld the verdict in February this year. Hannan and Bipul then appealed against the sentences in July.

Mufti Hannan and seven others were sentenced to death in 2014 for killing 10 people during the Pohela Boishakh celebrations at Ramna Batamul in 2001. He is also a prime accused in the August 21 grenade attack case.

Link

Bangladesh

Decision on militant Mufti Hannan’s fate Wednesday

2016-12-07

[Dhaka Tribune] The apex court will deliver verdict Wednesday in the appeals of two death-row convict murderous Moslems of banned outfit Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami Bangladesh (HuJI
Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west.
B) including its top leader Mufti Abdul Hannan in a case filed for the liquidation attempt on former British envoy Anwar Choudhury in 2004.

The four-member Appellate Division bench headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha fixed the date Tuesday after a hearing.

Three people, including an assistant sub-inspector of the police were killed while former UK high commissioner Anwar and 70 others injured in a grenade attack at the shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal in Sylhet on May 21, 2004.

Born in Sunamganj and a naturalised British citizen, Anwar served as the British high commissioner to Bangladesh from 2004 to 2008. He is currently serving as the ambassador to Peru.

Three murderous Moslems of the banned group ‐ Mufti Hannan, Sharif Shahedul Alam Bipul and Md Delwar Hossain alias Ripon ‐ were sentenced to death while two others ‐ Hannan’s brother Muhibullah alias Muhibur Rahman alias Ovi and Mufti Mainuddin Khaja alias Abu Jandal ‐ were given life sentence by the Sylhet Divisional Speedy Trial Tribunal on December 23, 2008.

The High Court upheld the verdict in February this year. Hannan and Bipul then appealed against the sentences in July.

Mufti Hannan and seven others were sentenced to death in 2014 for killing 10 people during the Pohela Boishakh celebrations at Ramna Batamul in 2001. He is also a prime accused in the August 21 grenade attack case.

Link

Bangladesh

Ex-UK envoy grenade attack case full verdict released

2016-04-29

[Dhaka Tribune] The High Court has released the full text of its judgment that upheld a lower court’s verdict against five Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami Bangladesh (HuJI
Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west.
B) Death Eaters for an liquidation attempt on former British high commissioner Anwar Choudhury in 2004.

This furthers the way for the death sentence of HuJi leader Mufti Abdul Hannan, who criminal masterminded several bombings between 2001 and 2004. He will still able to challenge the verdict at the Appellate Division.

The High Court bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Amir Hossain pronounced the judgment on February 11 this year, over seven years after the trial court verdict that gave death sentence to three and life imprisonment to two bully boys.

The 167-page full text written by Justice Rahim was uploaded on the Supreme Court’s website yesterday.

Three Death Eaters of the banned outfit HuJi - Mufti Hannan, Sharif Shahedul Alam Bipul, and Md Delwar Hossain alias Ripon ‐ were sentenced to death while two others ‐ Hannan’s brother Muhibullah alias Muhibur Rahman alias Ovi and Mufti Mainuddin Khaja alias Abu Jandal ‐ were given life terms by Sylhet Divisional Speedy Trial Tribunal on December 23, 2008.

A Sylhet court is currently hearing another case filed under the Explosives Act.

"After the release of the verdict there is no bar to carry out the death sentences as all the convicts are now in jail, unless they file an appeal with the Appellate Division," Deputy Attorney General Sheikh AKM Moniruzzaman Kabir told news hounds.

The High Court started the hearing on January 6 this year. Hearings were held for nine days. The convicts filed their appeals against the lower court sentence in 2009.

Three people, including a police assistant sub-inspector were killed while former high commissioner Anwar and 70 others were maimed in grenade attacks after the Jumma prayers at the shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal in Sylhet on May 21, 2004.

Born in Sunamganj and a naturalised British citizen, Anwar served as the British high commissioner to Bangladesh from 2004 to 2008. He is currently serving as the Ambassador to Peru.

Link

Bangladesh

14 Huji men freshly indicted after revising charges

2014-09-15

[Dhaka Tribune] A Dhaka court has freshly indicted chief of banned Islamist outfit HuJI
Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west.
Mufti Abdul Hannan and 13 others in the explosives case filed over blasting bombs during the Pahela Baishakh celebrations at Ramna Batamul in 2001.

Judge Shahed Nur Uddin of the Speedy Trial Tribunal 1 reframed the charges yesterday following a prosecution petition.

In the petition filed on August 7, special public prosecutor Abu Abdullah Bhuiyan mentioned that the HuJI men had earlier been charged in the case under a wrong section of law.

After the framing of charges under sections 3 and 6 of the Explosive Substances Act, the court has fixed September 21 for further trial of the case.

So far, seven witnesses have testified in the case. The court said on September 21 it would decide on whether to recall the seven witnesses or continue deposition of the other witnesses.

On April 16, 2009, the then metropolitan sessions judge ANM Bashir Ullah framed the charges under section 26 of the Special Powers Act and section 3 of the Explosive Substances Act.

As per the two sections of the Explosive Substances Act, if found guilty, the accused would be handed down death penalty. Of the 14 accused, nine including Mufti Hannan are in jail while the rest on the run.

In the killing case lodged over the same incident, a Dhaka court on June 23 handed down death penalty to eight HuJI members, including Hannan, and sentenced six others to life imprisonment.

Later the prosecution filed a petition to reframe the charges upon a Supreme Court directive in the case which was sought in 2009.

Ten people were killed and scores injured in the blast on April 14, 2001 while cultural group Chhayanaut was performing at the Bangla year celebrations. Two cases were filed with the Ramna police -- one for murder and the other for possession and use of explosive substances.

The Criminal Investigation Department pressed charges on December 30, 2008 in both the cases. The other accused are Arif Hasan alias Suman alias Abdur Razzak, Maulana Akbar Hossain alias Helal Uddin, Alhaj Maulana Md Tajuddin (absconding), Hafez Jahangir Alam Badar (absconding), Maulana Abu Bakar alias Hafez Selim Hawlader (absconding), Mufti Shafiqur Rahman (absconding), Mufti Abdul Hye (absconding), Hafez Maulana Yahiya, Maulana Shawkat Osman alias Sheikh Farid, Maulana Sabbir alias Abdul Hannan, Maulana Abu Taher, Shahadat Ullah alias Jewel and Maulana Abdur Rouf.

Mufti Hannan is facing charges in 24 other cases. In his statement made on November 19, 2006, he said they had carried out the attack since the programme was "anti-Islamic."

Link

Bangladesh

Bangladesh charges 13 over deadly 2001 attack

2014-08-22

[ARABNEWS] A Bangladesh court on Thursday charged 13 people with murder over a 2001 kaboom at a political rally in Dhaka that left five people dead.

A judge ruled the head of the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI
Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west.
) outfit, and four other members of the banned group should stand trial for the attack, a prosecutor said.

All 13 including HuJI leader Mufti Abdul Hannan face death by hanging if they are found guilty at trial of the attack.

"Of the accused, five including Mufti Hannan were present at the court room when the judge charged them for murder. The remaining eight are absconding," Asaduzzaman Rochi told AFP.

The eight, who have long been on the run, were charged in absentia.

The blast targeting the Communist Party of Bangladesh rally instantly killed four people and injured at least 25, one of whom later died later in hospital, he said.

The attack was one of a string that rocked Bangladesh after 1999 when many of the country's murderous Moslems started returning from Afghanistan.

The murderous Moslems created mayhem by targeting Christians, communists, cultural activists and members of secular parties.

Link

Bangladesh

Mufti Hanan to swing for Ramna Batamul killings

2014-06-24

[Dhaka Tribune] Chief of banned bad boy outfit Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami Mufti Abdul Hannan and seven of his aides have to walk the gallows for killing 10 people in a kaboom incident during the traditional celebrations of the Bangla New Year at the capital's Ramna Batamul in 2001.

For the same offence, six other HuJI
Founded in 1984 by Fazlur Rehman Khalil and Qari Saifullah Aktar. The Bangla branch was established in 1992 with assistance from Osama bin Laden. Recruits come mostly from Deobandi madrassahs. HuJI and Fazlur Rehman Khalil are signators of bin Laden's declaration of war on the west.
members were sentenced to life term imprisonment for conspiracy, plotting and carrying out the attack on commoners who were visiting the place to observe the day, 13 years back, on April 14.

Judge Ruhul Amin of the Second Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court of Dhaka read out the verdict in a jam-packed courtroom amid tight security measures yesterday morning.

The court also fined the 14 convicts Tk50,000 each.

Before reading out the sentences, the judge, in his observation, said the incident had no political link, and that the case was not a political one. Those who had died had gone to the place with their family members, kith and kin and children to celebrate the Bangla New Year. They were common people.

This celebration is not meant for any particular party, class, ideology, group or religion. That day, several thousand people of different religions, castes, groups, sexes and ages gathered at the venue.

The judge said from the confessional statements of the accused and depositions of witnesses, the court learned that two powerful bombs had been planted technically in the spot early in the morning, hours before the programme began.

According to bomb experts, two remote control devices were used to detonate the bombs.

The first bomb went kaboom! around 8:05am and the other 10-15 minutes later. Seven innocent people was struck down in his prime during the first kaboom and 20-25 people sustained injuries. Later three persons died at hospitals while undergoing treatment.

"The attackers did not target any certain person, object or group. The [organiser] Chhayanaut is also a non-political organization," the judge said.

"The motive of the attacks was to create political turmoil and panic, to pollute the cultural arena and stop cultural activities in the country. What the attackers and the planners did that day was heinous, barbaric and cruel. There is no scope to show sympathy or favour them," the court observed.

According to the accounts of the accused, there was no religious or social clash between the attackers and the victims. It was an attack on Bengali culture so that the people refrained from celebrating the day.

"It is one of the most heinous, barbaric and shameful attacks on general people since the country's War of Independence," the court said.

During the trial proceedings, six of the injured gave their depositions while eight more people who were present on the spot described the incident before the court. The other witnesses included eight relatives of the victims.

The court said the prosecution had succeeded in proving the charges against the accused based on the witness accounts and documents. Confessional statements of three accused, especially HuJI chief Mufti Hannan's statement, had helped the court to draw its conclusion. In his statement made on November 19, 2006, Hannan said they had carried out the attack since the programme was "anti-Islamic."

The death row convicts are Mufti Abdul Hannan Munshi alias Abul Kalam alias Abdul Mannan, Arif Hasan alias Suman alias Abdur Razzak, Maulana Akbar Hossain alias Helal Uddin, Alhaj Maulana Md Tajuddin (absconding), Hafez Jahangir Alam Badar (absconding), Maulana Abu Bakar alias Hafez Selim Hawlader (absconding), Mufti Shafiqur Rahman (Absconding) and Mufti Abdul Hye (absconding). Of them, Hannan, Akbar and Arif Hasan admitted their involvement in the incident. Later they submitted petitions to withdraw the statements, but those were rejected.

The lifers are Hafez Maulana Yahiya, Maulana Shawkat Osman alias Sheikh Farid, Maulana Sabbir alias Abdul Hannan, Maulana Abu Taher, Shahadat Ullah alias Jewel and Maulana Abdur Rouf. Hannan is facing 24 other cases.

The judge started reading out the verdict around 11:45am.

Nine HuJI men including Hannan were produced before the court around 10:50am. In the courtroom, they looked tensed and pale. Lifer Maulana Abu Taher cried after hearing the verdict.

'HuJI chief wanted no bloodshed'

In his confessional statement, Hannan said Hafej Abu Taher, who was the president of Ranangan Shilpi Gosthi, a cultural wing of HuJI, had met HuJI's former secretary Maulana Sheikh Farid in Dhaka. He proposed to Farid that they should launch a kaboom on the Bangla New Year ceremony to stop the programme.

"Sheikh Farid came to our city unit office, which was situated in the capital's Mohammadpur between the Shia Mosque and the Rahmania Madrasa. After a discussion among myself, Maulana Abdur Rouf, Yahiya Sabbir, Jahangir Badar, Abu Bakar and some others, Sheikh Farid asked Taher to launch the kaboom," Hannan said.

But at one stage of the discussion, the leaders at the meeting decided to consult the matter with HuJI chief Mufti Shafiqur Rahman, for approval. Farid, Abu Bakar and Jahangir went to Shafiqur's place to finalise the plan.

"After they came back, Farid told me that the chief had given his approval but had asked all to carry out the attack in a way so that no one was harmed."

The HuJI chief had instructed Sabbir and Jahangir to make the bombs. They were ordered to hand those over to Taher. The duo followed the instructions.

On the day of the incident, several HuJI men including Hasan and Omar Faruque (who used to introduce themselves as students of Dhaka College) planted the bombs.

Two cases — one for the killing and the other under the Explosive Substances Act — were filed with the Ramna cop shoppe.

On December 30, 2008, the Criminal Investigation Department pressed the charges against the 14 accused in both the cases. Earlier, the court recorded statements of 61 prosecution witnesses, including the complainant of the case.

The case involving explosive substances has remained stuck till now. In 2009, the Speedy Trial Tribunal 1 of Dhaka sought the Supreme Court registrar's opinion on whether both the cases could be tried together. The registrar has yet to respond on the matter.

Hannan claims himself innocent

After the judge delivered the verdict, death row convict Hannan, who had appointed no lawyers to defend him, immediately told news hounds that he had not received justice. "I was a prey of political vengeance. The prosecution failed to prove the charges against me. I am innocent," he stated.

Abu Taher claimed that he had known nothing about the incident. "God will decide my fate on the day of final judgement," he said.

Additional public prosecutor SM Jahid Hossain said they were somewhat happy, mentioning, "The state will file an appeal with the High Court seeking death penalty for the six HuJI men who have been awarded life sentences." On the other hand, one of the defence lawyers Jasim Uddin said they would also appeal against the judgement.

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