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Two militants sentenced to death were abducted from Dhaka's Anti-Terrorism Tribunal while en route to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) court on November 20, 2022. The militants, members of the banned organisation Ansar Al Islam (formerly Ansarullah Bangla Team), Moinul Hasan Shamim and Md. Abu Siddique Sohail, remain missing two years after the incident. Despite ongoing operations by Counter-Terrorism, RAB, and the Anti-Terrorism Unit to apprehend them, including a recent discovery of a hideout in Savar, the fugitives have evaded capture. Law enforcement officials believe they are still in the country, moving frequently to evade arrest, emphasising the urgency to apprehend them.
According to sources close to the matter, the whereabouts of the two fugitive militants, Moinul Hasan Shamim and Md. Abu Siddique Sohail, sentenced to death, have remained unknown for nearly two years. Despite ongoing operations and arrests of other militants during this period, Shamim and Sohail have evaded capture. Law enforcement agencies conducted operations in Rupganj and Savar, where the militants were believed to be hiding, but they had already left before the raids. Since then, police units have been actively searching for them, alongside efforts to locate Major (retd) Ziaul Haque Zia, the mastermind behind their abduction from the Anti-Terrorism Tribunal.
Asaduzzaman, the head of DMP's counter-terrorism unit, stated, "We are actively monitoring the situation and deploying multiple teams to apprehend the two fugitive terrorists. Our efforts are ongoing." He mentioned that upon receiving recent leads about their whereabouts, immediate operations were launched, but the fugitives managed to evade capture by being alerted beforehand.
Inspector Aziz Ahmed, leading the investigation, confirmed extensive operations across both countries to capture the fugitives. He mentioned conducting 18 to 19 raids in various locations and emphasised that the arrest operation remains ongoing. To date, 20 individuals have been apprehended in connection with the case. Two of the accused have confessed their involvement in the abduction incident, supported by witness testimony.
The incident occurred on November 20, 2022, when militants used pepper spray to abduct Moinul Hasan Shamim and Md. Abu Siddique Sohail, who had been sentenced to death for the murder of publisher Dipon. During the abduction attempt, there was also an effort to seize other accused individuals, Arafat and Sabur, who were later arrested by law enforcement authorities at the scene.
In this incident, Court Inspector Julhas filed a case at Kotwali police station. In the case, 7 to 8 more people are named as accused. According to the statement of the case, Ayman (37), Sabbirul Haque Chowdhury (24), Tanveer (26), Riazul Islam (26) and Omar Farooq (28) were planned and directed by the leader of Ansar Al Islam's military wing, Syed Mohammad Ziaul Haque alias Major Zia (retired major) planned to attack the police and kidnap the accused.
On the day of the incident, 12 accused were brought from Kashimpur to the Dhaka court in a prison van at 8:05 am. Around 9:40 am, the accused were taken to Anti-Terrorism Tribunal 8 of CJM Court Building to appear before the prosecution department of Dhaka. Accused No. 13 who is on bail after the hearing of this case. Eidi Amin (27) and accused No. 14 Mehdi Hasan Ami alias Rafi (24) left the court. After that, at around 11:55 am, 5 to 6 members of Ansar al-Islam and unidentified members of Ansar al-Islam on two motorcycles arrived in front of the main gate of the court. Another 10 to 12 members of Ansar al-Islam who were stationed attacked.
The accused Moinul Hasan Shamim (24), Abu Siddique Sohail, Arafat Rahman (24) and Sabur (21), attacked policemen on duty to kidnap. When the policemen stopped the militants from doing this, one of the accused hit Constable Azad in the face with an iron cutter in his hand.
Meanwhile, the detectives found the involvement of the most wanted militant leader Zia in the case of snatching two militants sentenced to death. Besides, this Zia is one of the masterminds of the murder of bloggers, free-thinkers, and publishers. Despite several attempts to arrest him, he could not be arrested. But he is traveling from one end of the country to another with the death sentence. He himself has come to the capital several times.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DC) Mahmudul Hasan from CTTC's Intelligence Analysis Division stated, "It is very challenging to ascertain definitively whether Major Zia is currently in the country or abroad. However, based on our operational activities and gathered intelligence, it appears unlikely that he has been able to leave the country. Therefore, we presume he is still within the country." Hasan emphasised that Major Zia leads Ansar Al Islam's military wing and noted similarities in recent militant operations to those under Zia's leadership, suggesting continuity in their operational methods. Efforts are underway to apprehend Major Zia.
During the period from 2013 to 2015, Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) was responsible for the killings of five bloggers, a publisher, two individuals advocating for gay rights, and a student from a private university. Investigations into these incidents identified Major Zia as the primary planner.
Law enforcement agencies have been endeavoring for the past decade to apprehend the fugitive Major Zia, who is accused in several incidents including the murder of blogger Abhijit Roy and has been sentenced to death. Despite numerous claims of sightings in various parts of the country, authorities have been unable to arrest him. Former Inspector General of Police Shahidul Haque had even announced a reward of Tk 20 lakh for information leading to his capture.
Messenger/Fameema
