The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has detained seven suspected militants in Chattogram, including an employee of the International Red Cross.
They have been identified as Md Mohiuddin Tamim; 29, Md Afzar Hossain; 21, Md Imran Khan; 27, Md Daud Nabi Palash; 28, Chowdhury Mohammad Ridwan; 27, SM Jawad Jafar; 26, and Md Muntasirul Meher; 26.
The seven were detained in an operation in the Anandabag area near the Kotowali Police Station’s Old Biman Office RAB-7 on Friday, said Assistant Director ASP Mimtanur Rahman.
“They are supporters of international militant organisation IS,” said Mimtanur.
“They opened two WhatsApp groups called ‘Deen Force Extreme’ and ‘Ikhwan’ and posted jihadist videos and pictures in social media. They were preparing for their so-called jihad.”
The group was using social media to contact various militant groups to ‘create a caliphate through jihad’. They were also working to bring together domestic militants.
Cases will be filed against them under the Counterterrorism Act, Mimtanur Rahman said.
Muntasirul is a field officer at the Cox’s Bazar branch of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
Afzar is a second-year student of Human Resources Management at Chittagong University. Daud is an Electrical and Electronic Engineering graduate from Premier University and works at Premier Cement.
Jawad graduated from International Islami University and was employed at a Chittagong EPZ garment factory named YoungOne.