Bangladesh probes British link to JMB den
Thursday, 26 March 2009
Bangladesh security forces are investigating a link between a British-based charity and an Islamic school where a huge cache of weapons and a bomb-making factory were found, police said Wednesday.
Police in southern Bangladesh conducted the raid on the Islamic seminary or madrassa Tuesday, uncovering firearms, bullets and explosive devices.
A member of the elite Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) told AFP the school had opened only 45 days ago on the remote island of Bhola in the south of the country.
"It is owned by the Green Crescent charity, which is a UK charity. They were running a school and an orphanage here," RAB officer K.M. Mamunur Rashid said, adding that the building was surrounded by water with a drawbridge so that locals could not access it.
"It's a mini-ordnance factory. We have found huge amounts of ammunition and enough equipment to make several hundred grenades and improvised explosive devices," he said.
Rashid added that jihadi literature had also been found, including books that encouraged Muslims to take up arms.
"It is a big madrassa and we have so far gathered that this whole compound is being used for militant training. The charity also has plans to build two more madrassas in Bhola," he said.
Bangladeshi authorities have long viewed madrassas with suspicion, fearing they could be potential recruiting grounds for Islamic militant groups.
Bangladesh was hit by a series of coordinated bomb attacks in August 2005, for which it sentenced seven Islamic militants to life in prison on Sunday.
Hirona Begum, 28, lives near the Bhola madrassa and said she had witnessed strange behaviour near the building for months.
"I was excited when they started building the school. I wanted my three children to go there but was told no locals were allowed. A lot of people from out of town would go to the madrassa. They did not talk to anyone in the village," she told AFP.
The seizure comes as authorities investigate dozens of Muslim charities in the impoverished country over allegations they are funding extremists.
The probe is in response to last month's mutiny at a military base in the capital, Dhaka, in which Islamic extremists are suspected to have played a role.
More than 70 people were killed, including at least 56 senior army officers, in the revolt at the Bangladesh Rifles headquarters.
Police in southern Bangladesh conducted the raid on the Islamic seminary or madrassa Tuesday, uncovering firearms, bullets and explosive devices.
A member of the elite Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) told AFP the school had opened only 45 days ago on the remote island of Bhola in the south of the country.
"It is owned by the Green Crescent charity, which is a UK charity. They were running a school and an orphanage here," RAB officer K.M. Mamunur Rashid said, adding that the building was surrounded by water with a drawbridge so that locals could not access it.
"It's a mini-ordnance factory. We have found huge amounts of ammunition and enough equipment to make several hundred grenades and improvised explosive devices," he said.
Rashid added that jihadi literature had also been found, including books that encouraged Muslims to take up arms.
"It is a big madrassa and we have so far gathered that this whole compound is being used for militant training. The charity also has plans to build two more madrassas in Bhola," he said.
Bangladeshi authorities have long viewed madrassas with suspicion, fearing they could be potential recruiting grounds for Islamic militant groups.
Bangladesh was hit by a series of coordinated bomb attacks in August 2005, for which it sentenced seven Islamic militants to life in prison on Sunday.
Hirona Begum, 28, lives near the Bhola madrassa and said she had witnessed strange behaviour near the building for months.
"I was excited when they started building the school. I wanted my three children to go there but was told no locals were allowed. A lot of people from out of town would go to the madrassa. They did not talk to anyone in the village," she told AFP.
The seizure comes as authorities investigate dozens of Muslim charities in the impoverished country over allegations they are funding extremists.
The probe is in response to last month's mutiny at a military base in the capital, Dhaka, in which Islamic extremists are suspected to have played a role.
More than 70 people were killed, including at least 56 senior army officers, in the revolt at the Bangladesh Rifles headquarters.