A large-scale joint operation involving more than 3,000 members of law enforcement agencies has been launched in the remote hilly area of Jungle Salimpur in Sitakunda upazila of Chattogram, long known as a stronghold of armed criminal groups.
The operation began early on Monday, with personnel from the Bangladesh Army, Police, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) taking part in the coordinated raid.
In the initial phase, authorities detained at least 15 people and recovered five firearms along with locally made weapons.
Officials said a full inventory of the seized arms and equipment could not immediately be confirmed because of poor mobile network coverage in the rugged hill terrain. Search operations were continuing.
Helicopters and drones were deployed during the operation, enabling aerial surveillance of the rugged hill terrain. Authorities also used dog squads, body-worn cameras and modern weapons as part of the coordinated raid.
The raid marks the first major security operation in the area in more than two decades.
Although officials claim the move has re-established government control in the region, the main suspects behind criminal activities are believed to have evaded arrest.
To strengthen security in the area, two temporary camps have been set up by police and RAB in the Chinnomul and Alinagar sections of Jungle Salimpur.
Law enforcement sources said the operation was launched following intelligence reports aimed at capturing suspects in the murder of RAB officer Abdul Motaleb Bhuiyan and arresting a notorious criminal leader, Mohammad Yasin, along with his associates.
Local residents, however, say Yasin may have escaped before the raid, reportedly fleeing the area disguised in a burqa.
RAB officer Abdul Motaleb Bhuiyan was killed in January when armed criminals opened fire on a law enforcement team during an earlier operation in the area. Several other officers were injured in the attack.
Mohammad Ahsan Habib Palash, Deputy Inspector General of Police for the Chattogram Range, said the area had effectively remained outside government control since 2003.
“The situation had deteriorated to the point where even law enforcement personnel were reluctant to enter the area,” he said, adding that authorities had previously attempted four times to enter the settlement but failed.
“This time, with a coordinated operation, we have managed to enter the area,” he said.
Palash said law enforcement agencies were prepared to use maximum force if necessary to suppress criminal groups.
“No terrorist will be given any form of leniency,” he said.
Jungle Salimpur stretches across an estimated eight to ten square kilometres of rugged hills and dense forest, located north of the Dhaka–Chattogram highway and just west of the Bayezid Bostami area.
The remote settlement has long served as a safe haven for armed land grabbers and organised criminal groups. Armed patrols reportedly control large parts of the area, and entry by outsiders is often restricted.
According to estimates by local authorities and law enforcement agencies, between 50,000 and 70,000 people now live in Jungle Salimpur, most in illegally built homes scattered across steep slopes, forest clearings and narrow hill paths.
Restore control in Jungle Salimpur
The operation began at around 5am on Monday, involving a total of 3,056 personnel from ten teams representing the police, RAB, BGB, the army, Armed Police Battalion (APBn), Ansar and the district administration.
Security forces first sealed off the entire area and set up checkpoints along all possible escape routes.
For security reasons, the Bayezid-Faujdarhat link road was temporarily closed, while army armoured vehicles were deployed along the surrounding roads.
Nazmul Hasan, additional deputy inspector general of police for the Chattogram Range, said the criminals had attempted to block the operation by barricading roads with trucks and damaging culverts to prevent the entry of security forces.
He said the forces later filled the damaged sections with bricks and sand before moving vehicles into the Alinagar area.
Journalists were not allowed to enter Jungle Salimpur during the operation.
Media personnel waited at the entrance of the area from morning until around 1:30pm, when security officials briefed them as they concluded the main phase of the operation.
Authorities said the plan is not only to strengthen law enforcement in the area but also to integrate the region into mainstream development.
Chattogram Divisional Commissioner Ziauddin said longstanding obstacles that had prevented the government from implementing planned development programmes there had now been removed.
“As a result, the path is now open for implementing government development projects in the area,” he said.
People relieved after joint operation
A visit to Jungle Salimpur at around 1:30pm on Monday found the Chinnomul section largely deserted.
Two police officers wearing body-worn cameras were seen stationed in the area, while other members of the police and RAB maintained positions nearby.
Residents appeared fearful, and few people were seen leaving their homes.
Local residents expressed relief after the operation, thanking the authorities and hoping that normal administrative activities would finally return to the area after years of criminal dominance.
People living in the settlement said armed groups had long controlled daily life, demanding extortion payments before allowing any work or business.
One mother said her son was severely beaten and forced to leave the area early this year.
Speaking to reporters, she said armed men had taken her son away, assaulted him and later expelled him from the neighbourhood.
According to the district administration, the government-owned khas land – formed through hill cutting – is now worth several thousand crore taka at current market prices.
Over the years, several criminal groups have fought for control of the area.
According to local sources, before the fall of the previous government, the Mushiyur-Gafur group controlled Salimpur, later replaced by the Rokon group.
Meanwhile, the Alinagar area was dominated by the Yasin group.
Local sources say the Yasin group recently forced out the Rokon group and extended its influence over both Alinagar and Salimpur, while the Ridwan group currently holds little presence in the area.
The region has witnessed repeated confrontations between authorities and armed groups.
In 2022, RAB personnel exchanged gunfire with criminals in the area.
That same year, a district administration team faced resistance while attempting to demolish illegal structures, and police officers were attacked in Alinagar.
Officials were also assaulted during another eviction drive the following year.
The district administration had earlier planned several development projects in the area, including a branch of Chattogram Central Jail, a model mosque and a planetarium.
However, those projects made no progress as the government had been unable to exercise effective control over the settlement.
