Terrorists on the run after Bangla crackdown

Source: TOI

Caesar Mandal, TNN 24 November 2009, 01:14am IST

KOLKATA: In a major boost to counter-insurgency operations against North-East militant outfits and terrorism, a top Jamaatul Mujahideen

Bangladesh (JMB) leader has reportedly has been neutralized' by Indian intelligence officers with the help of their Bangladesh counterparts.

Moulana Saidur Rahaman, chief (aamir) of the JMB, has sneaked into India after being hounded out his hideouts in Bangladesh, say intelligence sources. The outfit is believed to be the mentor of NE insurgents and Islamic terror masterminds, who have been in Bangladesh for years. Due to the crackdown, top JMB leaders are either on the run or in custody.

Intelligence officers believe Rahaman played a crucial role behind jehadi activities in Bangladesh and his organisation worked in tandem with the Bangladesh chapters of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and HuJI who are responsible for several terror attacks in India. Directed by their Pakistani handlers, Rahaman and his brigade arranged for training and shelter of LeT and HuJI operatives, say sources.

Sensing trouble in Bangladesh, Kamtapur Liberation Organisation chief Jiban Singh has sent feelers to Indian agencies to surrender, say sources.

Rahaman and son Abu Talha Muhammad Fahim alias Bashar narrowly escaped a Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) raid on a hideout in Sabujganj near Dhaka on November 1. But his wife Nurunnahar alias Himu and brother-in-law Russel's wife, Mimi, were rounded up. RAB officials seized SIM cards and documents that revealed his network across Bangladesh and how he liaised with N-E insurgent outfits.

"Most N-E militant leaders, including the top rung of Ulfa, were under Rahaman's shelter, and their cadres were trained by JMB instructors," said a senior intelligence officer.

"JMB men are now on the run. In fact, most Indian rebel leaders are trying to return to India. We have spoken with some of them through our sources, and they are now ready to join talks or even surrender," said a top intelligence officer in the North-East.

The direct cooperation of Bangladesh security forces helped Indian agencies round up two top Ulfa leaders Sashadhar Chowdhury and Chitraban Hazarika, self-styled foreign secretary and finance secretary of Ulfa.

Sources said Indian intelligence agencies are now trying to neutralize one of Rahaman's most trusted lieutenants, who knows every detail about Indian insurgents in Bangladesh. Like India, the USA is also interested in JMB's top leaders as they hold the key to Islamic militancy in south Asia. Sources said a telephonic intercept by a US agency led to the arrest of five dreaded LeT operatives operating from Bangladesh, who were in direct contact with the LeT leadership in Pakistan.