The discreet visit of Mollah Noor Ahmed Noor, a director general at Afghanistan’s foreign ministry and a senior Taleban political figure, has sparked widespread curiosity in diplomatic and security circles in Dhaka.
During his stay, Mollah Noor, also known as Molla Jawandi, held an informal meeting with Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman and a series of engagements with politicians, religious leaders, and educationists, including Khelafat Majlish Amir Mamunul Haque.
He also visited several madrassahs in different parts of the capital and its outskirts. Senior leaders of the banned militant outfit Harkat-ul-Jihad were seen accompanying him during some of these visits.
This marks the second high-profile visit from Afghanistan to the region in recent months, following Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s visit to India in October.
A foreign ministry official said Molla Jawandi was initially scheduled to attend only one seminar and had no other official engagements. “It is evident that he did not adhere to that commitment,” the official added.
Molla Jawandi arrived in Dhaka from Dubai on 21 December aboard an Emirates Airlines flight and was received by Bangladesh–Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries President Abu Sayem Khaled. He departed Dhaka on Monday. However, law-enforcement agencies later claimed they were unaware of his visit.
Series of engagements
Although he was expected to attend a seminar titled “Blueprint of the Islamic Emirates,” Mollah Noor did not participate in the event. Instead, he made an unscheduled visit to the commerce ministry on Sunday.
Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman told TIMES of Bangladesh on Monday evening, “Mollah Noor suddenly came to my secretariat office on Sunday afternoon. I gave him a 10-minute courtesy meeting and offered refreshments. There was no prior appointment.”
He said the discussion was limited to general issues, adding, “I was not briefed by the foreign ministry, and I am not aware of how much the government intends to engage with the Afghan authorities.”
The Blueprint of the Islamic Emirates seminar at the Institution of Diploma Engineers on Saturday was organised by Abu Sayem Khaled, but Mollah Noor did not attend. However, brothers of former Harkat-ul-Jihad chief Sheikh Farid were present at the programme.
Earlier, on Friday, Mollah Noor visited Khaled’s Jamiyah Qaramia madrassah in Fatullah. It is notable that Azad Kashmir Information Minister Peer Mazhar Sayed Shah had also visited the same madrassah in August.
Mollah Noor also visited Faridabad Madrassah and Jamiyah Rahmania Arabia Madrassah in Mohammadpur. On 25 December, he held meeting with Mamunul Haque and Qawmi Madrasa Education Board Secretary General Mahfuzul Haque.
Law enforcement unaware
Law-enforcement agencies said they had no information about the Afghan official’s visit.
Md Rezaul Karim, head of the Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU) of police, said, “We are not aware of the visit of Mollah Noor. Since he entered the country with a valid visa, it falls under the jurisdiction of the foreign ministry.”
Joint Commissioner of the Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit Munshi Shahabuddin also confirmed that his department had no prior knowledge of the visit.
Push for diplomatic engagement
Khelafat Majlish Amir Mamunul Haque and six other religious leaders visited Afghanistan in September. Mamunul Haque told TIMES, “Bangladesh does not have diplomatic relations with Afghanistan. I am trying to establish a link.”
He added that Mollah Noor visited several madrassahs during his stay and left Dhaka on Monday.
Following his September visit to Afghanistan, Mamunul Haque had earlier told reporters that Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi had requested him to work towards improving diplomatic relations between Dhaka and Kabul.
