A Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) warrant officer who went missing from a Chattogram base has been traced to a Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) hideout, setting off a sweeping internal probe into suspected extremist links within the service, according to multiple sources in security and intelligence units.
They said more than 20 people have so far been detained, including about 12 combatant BAF members — two officers, several warrant officers and airmen — and more than 10 non-combatants, including an imam of a BAF base mosque.
They were detained over the past week.
The development has triggered coordinated scrutiny across multiple BAF installations, as investigators examine whether a recruitment network operated inside the force for months, whether sensitive information may have been exposed, and whether Bangladeshi recruits were sent abroad to join militant activities.
The inquiry began after the warrant officer, posted at BAF Base Zahurul Haque in Chattogram, remained absent without leave for about two months. He was later identified and arrested at a TTP hideout, a banned militant group waging an insurgency against the Pakistani state to impose its own interpretation of Sharia law, according to sources familiar with the investigation.
Contacted Saturday night, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director Sami Ud Dowla Chowdhury told TIMES of Bangladesh that they would not make any comment on the issue. “We are not making any comments in this regard. If necessary, we will let you know later.”
TTP’s linkage to Bangladesh came to the surface last year when media reported that at least four Bangladeshis were killed by Pakistani forces while fighting for the group. Some others went to Pakistan to fight for the group, police sources said.
Investigators said the questioning of the warrant officer also revealed claims that several Bangladeshis had travelled to Pakistan, joined TTP, and took part in fighting alongside the militant group.
Following the disclosures, security agencies carried out scrutiny at BAF Base Zahurul Haque, BAF Base AK Khandaker, and BAF Base Matiur Rahman.
Preliminary findings indicate possible links involving personnel across different squadrons, including a unit in Cox’s Bazar, though the scope of involvement remains under verification.
Investigators are examining claims by the arrested warrant officer that TTP-linked recruitment efforts had been under way for several months and may have involved more Air Force members.
An imam of one of the BAF base mosques was arrested on suspicion of acting as a key recruiter, sources said.
At least six warrant officers previously linked to the case are believed to have left Bangladesh for destinations including Turkey, Pakistan, New Zealand, and Portugal, potentially complicating the probe and widening its international dimension.
“Apart from the disclosures of the warrant officer, we seized some electronic devices of the absconding airmen. All these led to the detention of the persons,” one Air Force source told TIMES on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.
Intelligence surveillance has been stepped up after indications that efforts were under way to establish a possible training facility in the Ukhia area of Cox’s Bazar.
Security agencies are assessing several risks, including the potential leakage of sensitive military information.
Officials described the situation as a serious internal security concern, though they cautioned that the investigation is ongoing and that individual culpability has yet to be established through due process.
Authorities said close intelligence monitoring and preventive measures have been reinforced across installations as the probe continues.
Bangladeshis fighting for TTP
Pakistani and Bangladeshi media reported in December last year that at least four Bangladeshis have been killed while fighting for TTP.
Faisal Hossain, 22, Zubair Ahmed, 22, and Ratan Dhali, 29, are among those identified as dead.
Faisal was killed on 26 September 2025 by Pakistani security forces during an operation in Karak district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Zubair is believed to have been killed in April 2025, while Ratan’s fate remains uncertain, Pakistan’s English daily Dawn reported, citing family members and experts at the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit.
According to several CTTC officials, three to four dozen Bangladeshis travelled to Pakistan to fight for the banned militant group.
