Awaaz - South Asia Watch News

News and information provided in conjunction with South Asia Citizens Wire and other sources
Posts do not necessarily reflect the views of Awaaz

Friday, May 19, 2006

Bodies found in VHP worker's car / Vadodara 

http://www.ibnlive.com/news/bodies-found-in-vhp-workers-car/10852-3.html

Bodies found in VHP worker's car
CNN-IBN

Posted Friday , May 19, 2006 at 08:34
Updated Friday , May 19, 2006 at 08:43

Vadodra (Gujrat): Dabhoi town of Vadodara district continued to be tense
after bodies of two children were recovered from a car of a local VHP leader
on Thursday.

The bodies were recovered from a car of VHP activist Jagdish Pankit. The
recovered bodies bore burnt injury marks. Pankit says he has no clue on how
the bodies reached his car.
He claimed the vehicle had not been used for about four months.
The incident led to tension in the area. Vadodara was just trying to recover
from the riots that took place only two weeks back.

The complaint regarding the disappearance of two children was lodged with
the police two days ago. The Deputy Superintendent of Police of Vadodara,
Jabang Zamir said the situation is under control and no untoward incident
has been reported.

(With agency inputs)

Sunday, May 14, 2006

Militants sentenced in Bangladesh 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4770265.stm

Militants sentenced in Bangladesh
Sunday, 14 May 2006, 13:41 GMT 14:41 UK

Ten militants have been sentenced to life imprisonment in Bangladesh for
their involvement in a series of co-ordinated bomb attacks last August.
Another three militants were jailed for 20 years over the seven bombings in
the northern town of Joypurhat.

The militants are members of the banned Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen group, which
has campaigned for Islamic law to be introduced in Bangladesh.

Bomb attacks blamed on the group left 28 people dead last year.

Four suicide bombers were among those killed.

The militants sentenced on Sunday are accused of organising a series of
blasts on 17 August - a day on which more than 400 bombs were detonated
across Bangladesh, killing three people.

In February, 21 members of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen were sentenced to death for
attacks in the western district of Jhenidah.

The group's alleged leader, Sheikh Abdur Rahman, and the man accused of
being his deputy, Siddiqul Islam, known as Bangla Bhai, were arrested in
March.

They face trial in more than 100 cases in connection with the bombings.


FURTHER BACKGROUND

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4779544.stm

Is Bangladesh winning against extremism?
By Waliur Rahman
BBC News, Dhaka
Monday, 6 March 2006, 17:15 GMT

Two of the most wanted Islamic militants in Bangladesh have been arrested in
the past seven days. What does this mean for the country's fight against
extremism?

The capture of Siddiqul Islam, the second most wanted Islamic militant in
Bangladesh, came just four days after the arrest of his alleged spiritual
guru Abdur Rahman.

Islam, known as Bangla Bhai meaning Brother of Bengal, came to notoriety in
April 2004 as the leader of Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB) - the
group blamed for a number of vigilante killings in north-western Bangladesh.

Police say the JMJB was an off-shoot of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh
(JMB), the banned Islamist militant group led by Abdur Rahman, which has
been blamed by the government for a wave of bombings that have killed nearly
30 people.

The two men had been on the run since the government announced a $70,000
bounty for information leading to their arrests, following bombings in
August last year.

'Temporary setback'

Security analysts described the arrests as a "quite significant" development
in containing extremism in Bangladesh, where the authorities have long been
in denial about the problem.

"These are the two men who were in control of the JMB, so there is no doubt
that their arrests will significantly reduce the capability of the group,"
said retired Brigadier General Shakhawat Hossain.

Rahman is said to have provided key information to intelligence agents

He said the arrest of Abdur Rahman proved to be the most important factor in
the government's fight against militancy, as the information he provided to
intelligence agents led to the capture of Bangla Bhai in just four days.

Brig Gen Hossain said the organisation appeared to be too centralised -
despite carrying out lethal suicide bombings, it had never had a proper
structure.

"They probably launched themselves into these activities prematurely. The
two arrests also prove the organisation did not grow much beyond the
leadership," he told the BBC.

But security analysts are sceptical the arrests will deal a final blow to
the JMB and other militant groups.

"It could be a temporary setback," said Brig Gen Hossain. He said the middle
leadership would initially be on the run, but they would probably try to
re-group and fill the vacuum created by the crackdown.

'Roots still intact'

"The most significant point is that although the majority of people in
Bangladesh are Muslim, they really don't like extremism. And that is why
they did not get the necessary support from the people in localities where
they operated," he said.

The JMB has been blamed a number of bombings

The government claimed success soon after the arrest of Bangla Bhai. But
opposition groups are not convinced.

"We cannot call it a success. Without arresting those who sheltered Bangla
Bhai, his capture is like chopping the branches off a tree while keeping the
roots intact," said Rashed Khan Menon, president of the left-wing Workers'
Party of Bangladesh.

Abdul Jalil of the Awami League called the arrests "a drama".

"Both of them were created by the government but were arrested keeping the
next general election in mind," he said.

The government denied the allegations, and promised to investigate whether
the militants have links with any other political groups.

Prime Minister Khaleda Zia said there is no place for extremism in
Bangladeshi society.

"I am hopeful that all the terrorist networks will be destroyed very soon
and the remaining terrorists will be captured," he said.