Dangerous militant leaders linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (ISIS) made history on Friday by chanting slogans boasting their role in spreading jihad after the Juma prayers in Dhakaโs Paltan area.
They brought out the procession of 200-300 people and waved Kalema flags to show off their strength in protest against the policeโs case against six militants linked to the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) following the arrest of an operative in Savar earlier this month.
They denied involvement in militancy and claimed themselves Islamic activists to echo the governmentโs version of rejecting the presence of militants in Bangladesh and labelling the previously accused militants as Islamic-minded pious people.
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The participants were chanting various slogans. In particular, the slogan, “Who are you, who am I? Militant, militant; who said it, who said it; a supporter of tyranny” became viral, creating panic among the peace-loving people.
Bangladesh has experienced a series of militant attacks since 2013, including the murder of secularists and war crimes trial campaigners, foreigners at Holey Artisan Bakery, and minorities, in line with the global campaigns of al-Qaeda and Islamic State.
Moreover, locally grown militant groups like JMB, HuJI-B and Hizb ut-Tahrir were active in recruiting and training fighters for the two international outfits.
The procession was led by Asif Adnan, an Islamic State recruiter arrested in 2015, Dr. Mehdi Hasan and Maulana Ahmed Rafiq, among others.
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The speakers alleged that in recent times, false cases have been filed against several religious and Islamist figures and organisations in the country under the label of “militants”, which is a despicable attempt at political revenge and against religious consciousness.
On the one hand, this is defaming innocent Islamic citizens, and on the other hand, the credibility of the state security system is also being questioned.
They said it is an attempt to start a new militant drama in the context of raising objections to the establishment of the United Nations Human Rights Office. Once this office is established, these dramas will accelerate.
Well known for advocating for jihad in Myanmar, India and Palestine, Asif Adnan is an accused in the case filed with Savar police station on July 5, alongside Maulana Zakaria Masud, Maulana Rezaul Karim Abrar, Al Imran alias Engineer Imran Haider, and Sanaf Hossain, for their involvement with the TTP.
Since the beginning of the July riots, Asif Adnan was active on social media to promote violent means and justify the acts as per Quranic verses. He was also present when Bangabandhuโs sculptures were demolished on August 5 and when the pro-government National Citizen Party (NCP) demonstrated to demand a ban on the Awami League.
Asif Adnan is a close aide of Lashkar-e-Tayyiba member and Hefazat-e-Islam leader Mufti Harun Izhar, a top militant previously associated with the HuJI-B. Izhar recently met with Law Adviser Asif Nazrul to ensure the release of all religious leaders and activists from jail.
Another al-Qaeda militant leader, Jasimuddin Rahmani, was released from jail by the Yunus regime, raising concerns about the rise of extremism.
Dozens of other militants, who were freed from jail during the July-August anarchy, have remained traceless to date as the Jamaat-backed government needs them to fight India and the Awami League.
Wave of protests
Meanwhile, two other radical Islamist partiesโIslami Andolan Bangladesh (IAB) and Bangladesh Khelafat Majlisโstaged protest rallies at the north gate of Baitul Mukarram National Mosque following Juma prayers.
They also protested at the attempts to set up an office of the UN Human Rights, with a homosexual as its chief, for three years.
The Yunus government signed an agreement with OHCHR to support the promotion and protection of human rights.
The protests addressed concerns over deteriorating law and order and ongoing corruption and extortion.
IAB Secretary General Maulana Yunus Ahmad said: โExtortion has been going on at every intersection and at the bus and launch terminals. The situation has not changed from what it was before. In fact, the situation regarding corruption, discrimination and extortion has worsened in many places. Every institution of the country needs reforms to bring changes. Otherwise, we will revert to the old situation.โ
At the Khelafat Majlis protest, Secretary General Maulana Jalaluddin Ahmad demanded justice for the JulyโAugust massacre. โThe enablers of the autocrat are still conspiring but the government has failed to bring them to book,โ he said, warning of further movements if justice is not served.
He strongly opposed the establishment of the UN Human Rights Office in Dhaka, saying that they will compel the government to backtrack from this initiative at any cost.
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