BD arrests 10 Islamist extremists

DHAKA: Bangladesh police on Monday widened a sweeping crackdown against Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) militants, arresting at least 10 suspected extremists and seizing weapons, suicide vests and literature on Islamic Jihad.

The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) counter-terrorism force detained the suspects in a second day of raids targeting the homegrown extremist outfit blamed for numerous atrocities, including a cafe siege that killed 22 people, mostly foreigners.

Among those arrested was Shaykh Mamunur Rashid, an Islamic boarding school teacher in the capital Dhaka who is accused of translating extremist literature to "motivate" young recruits, said RAB spokesman Mufti Mahmud Khan.

"He misinterpreted the Quran and was working on spreading propaganda across the country," Khan told reporters, referring to the 34-year-old madrassa teacher.

Six youths aged between 19 and 23 were also detained in Dhaka with USB sticks containing militant information. They were planning "the murders of progressive Islamic scholars who protest extremism", said police spokesman Masudur Rahman.

In the northwestern district of Rajshahi, police raided an extremist hideout and seized two suicide vests and guns, local police chief Khurshid Hossain told AFP. Three suspects were arrested at the scene.

"We cannot yet confirm whether there are more explosives inside the house. Our experts will sweep the premises soon," said Hossain.