Members of banned militant groups are directly linked to recent bomb and explosive recovery incidents in and around Dhaka, according to investigators.
Security concerns have intensified over 70 militants who escaped from prisons during the July 2024 mass uprising and 380 militants who secured bail during the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus but failed to appear before courts.
Recent recoveries of bombs and bomb-making materials in Dhaka and nearby areas have raised fears of militant regrouping.
The Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police said it obtained information about militant networks after arresting Arif alias Imran from Shyampur in Savar.
Based on information about individuals, including Nazmul Hasan Mamun alias “Bomb-maker Mamun” and Jewel, police arrested Jewel with two bombs during an operation in Demra, Dhaka, on Sunday.
A recent United Nations Security Council report also expressed concern over al-Qaeda activities in Bangladesh. Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed, however, dismissed the report, saying it was based on assumptions.
“The government is not giving much importance to the UN report on alleged al‑Qaeda activities in Bangladesh,” he said while talking to journalists on Monday.
Security experts, however, warned that potential militant activities should not be ignored.
“In the past, several militant incidents were initially described as isolated events. Later, organisational links behind those incidents came to light,” security analyst Air Commodore (retd) Ishfaq Elahi Chowdhury told TIMES of Bangladesh
“Considering the UN report, its sources, and recent arrests and explosive recoveries, the issue needs serious review,” he added.
Major General (retd) Fazle Elahi Akbar also warned against taking the issue lightly, saying trained individuals and financial support were involved.
CTTC chief Mohammad Shamsul Haque said the threat would ease if several individuals, including Bomb-maker Mamun, were arrested.
“Operations and investigations are underway to arrest them,” he said.
Hundreds of militants remain absconding
A large number of prisoners escaped from several jails across the country in 2024. Among them, 98 were accused in militant-related cases, including nine convicted prisoners and four death-row convicts.
Although 28 were later arrested, the whereabouts of the remaining fugitives remain unknown. Another 380 militants who secured bail after 5 August 2024 have also failed to appear before courts.
According to the Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU), 185 members of Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), 83 of Ansar al-Islam, 16 each of Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami Bangladesh (HuJI-B) and Neo-JMB, nine of Allah’r Dal, one of Jama’atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya, 59 of Hizb ut-Tahrir and one member of Imam Mahmud’s Caravan remain absconding.
ATU sources said 2,143 members of banned extremist organisations were arrested between 2021 and 2024. Between 2021 and December 2025, 1,611 were released on bail, while 162 remain in prison.
According to ATU data, 59 death-row convicts, 46 life-term prisoners and 25 others serving different sentences from extremist groups are currently held in 16 prisons.
Jailbreak fugitive held with bombs
Jewel Bhuiyan alias “Ostad”, arrested with two bombs in Sarulia of Demra, Dhaka, is a militant who escaped from Narsingdi District Jail, according to law enforcement agencies.
Police said Jewel was a close associate of Nazmul Hasan Mamun alias “Bomb-maker Mamun”, a Neo-JMB bomb-making trainer.
Jewel was arrested during a joint police and ATU operation on Sunday. Two handmade bombs were later recovered from the house where he was staying and neutralised by the CTTC bomb disposal unit.
ATU arrested Jewel in 2023 on suspicion of links to Hizb ut-Tahrir. He later escaped from Narsingdi District Jail on 19 July 2024 during an attack, vandalism and arson at the facility linked to the quota reform movement.
A total of 826 prisoners escaped from the jail after looting 85 firearms and 8,150 bullets. Jewel was arrested six days later on 25 July.
After the fall of the Awami League government on 5 August, Jewel and Mamun were released on bail in September.
According to CTTC, Nazmul Hasan alias Bomb-maker Mamun is a bomb-making trainer of Neo-JMB. After his release from prison following 5 August 2024, he started living in Keraniganj and Savar.
Police said Sheikh Al Amin, Mohammad Arif and at least 15 others joined him and began collecting bomb-making materials, funds and manpower to plan attacks.
During the CTTC’s “Operation August Bite” at Hotel Olio International in Panthapath, Dhaka, on 15 August 2017, suicide bomber Saiful Islam died after detonating explosives.
Police submitted the charge sheet in the case in 2019, naming Mamun as an accused. However, a Dhaka court acquitted all accused, including Mamun, in January this year.
CTTC Joint Commissioner Munshi Shahabuddin told TIMES that several incidents were connected, including bomb-making explosions in Keraniganj, the Jatrabari bomb bag incident, the Cumilla temple blast, explosive recovery in Jashore, the umbrella bomb found under Motijheel Metro Rail Station, pressure cooker bomb recovery in Savar, pipe bomb recovery in Demra and the bomb explosion during a search operation in Sayedabad.
He said Neo-JMB members were involved in making bombs and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and placing them at different locations to create panic.
