gurumia.com » Security

Bangladesh Village of extortionist(Lundhi village ) dicovered by RAB

guru — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 16:11:04 +0000

Bangladesh’s elite security forces said Monday they had made a major breakthrough in the fight against extortion with a raid on town where nearly every resident was involved in racketeering.
Cracking down on rampant cell phone crimes, Bangladesh’s elite security forces have zeroed in on a village, most of whose residents were found to be involved in racketeering using mobiles, officials said.

The elite anti-crime Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) officials said they discovered a village in southwestern Rajoir sub-district to which a bulk of such crimes all over the country are traced.

“Astonishingly, most male residents of different ages ranging from 14 to 60 of the Lundhi village appeared to be involved in extortion using mobile phones… our officers during investigations in recent months found most of the extortion suspects hailed from the single village,” Lieutenant Colonel Mamun Mahmud said.

A series of raids on Lundhi, 90 kilometres (60 miles) south of the capital Dhaka and home to 2,000 people, led to 11 arrests, including two ringleaders of gangs using mobile phones to extort money.

“We believe 80 percent of extortion-related threats made over mobile phones in Bangladesh originate from this village,” Rapid Action Battalion officer Colonel Mamum Mahmud told Media.

He said officers were “awestruck” to discover nearly everyone — from students aged 14 to elderly school janitors — was involved in mobile phone extortion.

“During calls, they identify themselves as some notorious criminal and then demand their victim send them money or face the consequences — they’ve conned a huge number of people,” Mamum said.

“It’s a very lucrative business. We have identified at least 20 groups who are involved. They have agents in the capital to collect the extorted money and gather personal information about potential targets,” he said.

Extortion using mobile phone has been a huge problem in Bangladesh since around 2001, when phone companies entered a price war and flooded the market with cheap cell phones, which were given out without proper registration.

Last year, scores of people were arrested for mobile phone extortion but successful prosecutions are rare, police say.

Approached for comments, Awami League lawmaker and Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan, who represents a constituency where the village is located, said he too had heard of the village, the home of an estimated 2,000 people.

“Being the MP from the area I too heard about it… but not all the people there, as you said, are involved in the crime,” he said jokingly, but declined to comment further.
A number of suspects having their origin in Lundhi were arrested in the past several weeks from Dhaka as well as the village under a series of raids, he said.

Home Minister Sahara Khatun last week said the government planned to formulate a policy to check the rising incidents of cellphone crimes including extortion and ban its sale to youths under 18.

“We are framing a policy to be enforced in next two months to curb the crimes and misuse of cell phones,” Khatun told reporters after an inter-ministerial meeting also joined by mobile phone operators.

By Blogsdna

BDR Rivel judgement :Bangladesh sentences border guards for 2009 mutiny

guru — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 14:18:50 +0000

, . Bangladeshi special court convicted and jailed 57 border guards on Sunday in relation to a bloody mutiny last year that left 74 people dead, a state prosecutor said.
Scores of senior army officers were killed in the 33-hour uprising that began when soldiers at the Bangladeshi Rifles (BDR) headquarters in Dhaka went on a killing spree, later hiding the bodies in sewers and shallow graves.

The mutiny swiftly spread to BDR posts outside Dhaka, with thousands of guards taking up arms against their commanding officers in the worst military rebellion in the country’s history.

The guards, known as the Bangladesh Rifles, say they revolted over long-standing demands for parity in pay and other perks enjoyed by army officers, who command the border forces.

On Sunday, 57 guards were given sentences ranging from four months to seven years. Four defendants received the maximum, according to Judge Maj. Gen. Mainul Islam.

He said they were found guilty of taking up arms, firing and blocking a road during the Feb. 25-26 uprising.

The special court deals with only mutiny charges, and those accused of crimes like murder and arson will be tried separately.

Fifty-seven army commanders were among those killed in the mutiny that began at the guards’ headquarters in Dhaka and spread to border camps across the country. It occurred just two months after the country’s powerful military, which has backed 21 coups in the country’s 38-year history, relinquished power to a civilian government under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

The military was furious with how Hasina handled the mutiny, which was ended through negotiations, including offers of amnesty. But when dozens of bodies ? including those of dozens of commanding officers ? were discovered dumped into shallow graves or sewers on the sprawling compound, the government rescinded the amnesty offer for those who led the mutiny.

Sunday’s sentences were the third set related to the mutiny. Earlier this month 79 border guards were sentenced separately to jail terms ranging from four months to seven years in northern Bangladesh.

The government has so far arrested 2,136 members of the force in connection with the mutiny, and has set up six special courts headed by Islam to hear the cases.

Hasina has said she will ensure justice for the families of the mutiny victims.

By Blogsdna

100 insurgents of al-Qaida were arrested

guru — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 20:59:04 +0000

DUBAI: Saudi Arabian anti-terror forces swooped down and busted heavily-armed cells of al-Qaida linked terrorists who were planning to strike nation’s oil installations and security establishments.

More than 100 insurgents were arrested in raids carried out earlier this week and the terror cells busted comprised mostly Saudi and Yemeni nationals, as well as residents of Somalia, Bangladesh and Eriteria, the interior ministry said in a statement read out over state television.

Those rounded up included a Yemeni, whom Saudi security officials described as being a prominent member of al-Qaida. Armaments seized included explosive belts used by suicide bombers, assault rifles, ammunition, computers, pre-paid mobile SIM cards and documents, the interior ministry said.

Most of those arrested were from the southern province of Jazan, near the border with Yemen, where Yemeni forces and al-Qaida linked rebels and Shia groups have been locked in fierce fights. Saudi officials said those apprehended comprised 47 Saudis, 51 Yemenis and a Somali, Bangladeshi and an Eriterian national. One group consisted of more than 100 insurgents, while two others were smaller.

The Saudi anti-terror forces stumbled on the terror cells following arrest of two suspected al-Qaida terrorists who tried to infiltrate into the Kingdom, disguised in burqa and carrying explosive belts. The two were shot dead by Saudi guards. “The strike by the terror cells was imminent,” Saudi officials said.

Saudi anti-terror forces have recently foiled several plots to assassinate members of the ruling al-Saud family. Deputy interior minister prince Mohammad bin Nayef escaped a bid to kill him recently. Even though the announcement was made on Wednesday, the authorities did not disclose dates of the arrests.

By Blogsdna

India-Bangladesh security conference in Delhi opening

guru — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 15:08:04 +0000

Source :As India strives for safe neighbourhood with intensified engagements with its neighbours, an India- Bangladesh Security Dialogue is being organised later this week in Delhi by two premier think tanks of these countries.

The Bangladesh Enterprise Institute (BEI), Dhaka, led by former Foreign Secretary Mr. Farooq Sobhan, has joined Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi, in organizing this two-day Dialogue, which will begin on March 19 with the inaugural address by the Union Home Secretary, Mr. G.K. Pillai.

The conference, the second in the series, will discuss various security aspects affecting both the countries like radicalization, militancy and terrorism in Bangladesh, radicalization and terrorism in India: role of Lashker-e-Toibba, terror financing in South East Asia, combating terrorism: regional cooperation in South Asia, the North East factor in India-Bangladesh relations, etc.

The conference will also discuss developments since the organization of the first Dialogue in December 2009 in Dhaka – a month before the successful state visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister to India in January this year.

The importance of the Dialogue can be gauged from the involvement of high leadership of the Government. The Finance Minister, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, who was earlier the External Affairs Minister, is hosting high tea for the delegates at his house while the Foreign Secretary, Ms Nirupama Rao, is hosting lunch at the Hyderabad House.

At the Dhaka Dialogue, the Foreign Minister and the Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh had addressed the conference. Apart from a general discussion of India-Bangladesh relations, the focus of the first meeting was also on “Security and Terrorism”.

The BEI President, Mr. Farooq Sobhan, who is the leader of the Bangladeshi delegation, is bringing a high-powered delegation of 16 scholars and experts, including several serving officials for the New Delhi Dialogue.

Mr. M.K. Rasgotra, a former Foreign Secretary and now the President of the ORF Centre for International Affairs, is heading the Indian side which comprises of many eminent scholars, security analysts, terrorism experts, retired army generals and former diplomats.

The meeting will focus on issues with ramifications for both the internal and external security of both the countries. The issues those are likely to find prominence at the dialogue include radicalization, militancy, terrorism, terrorist finances and will also look for areas of cooperation.

The dialogues will be followed a Memorandum of Understanding signed between ORF and BEI to organize conferences on matters of mutual interest. (ANI)

By Blogsdna

Bangladesh detains suspected 5 Pakistani militants

guru — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 14:44:19 +0000

Five operatives of Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad have been arrested in the capital Dhaka, a Rab official said on Sunday.

Of the five, one is a Pakistani national while the remaining four are Bangladeshi citizens, Rab Assistant Director (media wing) Mohammad Kamaruzzaman said

The arrested are: Rezwan Ahmed, 26, of Karachi, Pakistan, two brothers — Imazuddin alias Munna and Sadek Hossain alias Khoka — sons of Mohiuddin of Hajiganj thana in Chandpur, Abu Naser Munshi of the same district, and Nannu Mia alias Belal Mandol of Kotwali thana in Sylhet.Rab Intelligence Wing and Rab-2 in a drive from around 1:30am to 6:30am arrested the militants at 5/F Sukanya Tower near the Gausia Market on the city’s Mirpur road.

The militant suspects belong to Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad group which is reportedly responsible for the 2001 terrorist attacks on the Indian Parliament in New Delhi, said Colonel Matiur Rahman, additional director general of Bangladesh’s elite Rapid Action Battalion.

Rezwan at a press briefing at the Rab headquarters confessed that he had been working as a coordinator of Jaish-e-Mohammad in Bangladesh and also a recruiting agent for conducting operations in India

Among the detainees, Redwan Ahmed, a Pakistan national, was in charge of recruiting members for the outfit in Dhaka to implement its plans, Rahman said adding that another member of the group, Billal Hossain Nannu, was charged with an attempt to hijack a plane in Kathmandu in 1999.

He served a 10-year jail term in India, the official said.

About Jaish-e-Mohammad,

Jaish-e-Mohammed (Urdu: ??? ????, literally The Army of Mohammad, transliterated as Jaish-e-Muhammed, Jaish-e-Mohammad or Jaish-e-Muhammad, often abbreviated as JeM) is a major Islamic mujahedeen organization based in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The group’s primary motive is to separate Kashmir from India and it has carried out several attacks primarily in Indian-administered Kashmir.It has been banned in Pakistan since 2002, yet continues to operate several facilities in Bahawalpur, Punjab.

Jaish-e-Mohammed is viewed by some^[who?] as the “deadliest” and “the principal terrorist organization in Jammu and Kashmir“.^[1] The group is regarded as a terrorist organization by several countries, including India, United States^[1] and United Kingdom.

Notable Incidents

The group, in coordination with Lashkar-e-Tayiba, has been implicated in the 2001 Indian Parliament attack in New Delhi.^[1]
It as been suspected in the murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl in Karachi.^[2]^[4]
An informant, posing as a member of Jaish-e-Mohammed, helped police to arrest four people allegedly plotting to bomb a New York City synagogue as well as to shoot Stinger missiles at military aircraft in the United States. The arrest of the four took place in May 2009. One of the four, by the name of James Cromitie, allegedly expressed the desire to join Jaish-e-Mohammed. This expression allegedly took place approximately a year prior to this arrest.^[5]^[6]^[7]
On December 9, 2009, five Muslim Americans, who knew each other from the ICNA Center in Arlington, Virginia,^[8] were detained in Pakistan during a police raid.^[8] The men had met with Jaish-e-Muhammed in Pakistan and offered their assistance in jihadi attacks.^[9] The house they were detained in was occupied by Khalid Farooq, the father of one of the men. He is suspected of ties to Jaish-e-Muhammed, to which the house itself is also linked.^[8]??See also
2009 detention of Americans by Pakistan
Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir
Khuddam ul-Islam
List of terrorist organisations in India

By Blogsdna

US NAVY Ship SAFEGUARD (T-ARS 50) to Bangladesh

guru — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 06:07:20 +0000

To improve the security ,VBangladesh navy and US Navy going to arrage a joint tranning secession.
The United States’ Navy Ship SAFEGUARD (T-ARS 50), the lead ship of the SAFEGUARD class and the Navy’s only forward-deployed rescue and salvage vessel, will conduct a port call in Chittagong on Feb. 13 to 18.

“During the port call, the crew will train together with Bangladesh Navy sailors on advanced diving and salvage techniques,” a U.S. embassy press statement said in the capital, Dhaka on Thursday.

The USNS Safeguard last visited Bangladesh in November 2008.

This visit is the latest in a series of exercises with the Bangladesh Navy Special Warfare and Diving Salvage Center (BN SWADS) at the BNS Issa Khan Naval Base in Chittagong, the statement added.

“This port call demonstrates United States government’s commitment to Bangladesh and to regional security by promoting military-to-military relationships throughout Asia and the Pacific,” the statement noted.

By Blogsdna

15-Year Bond Interest Remains Unchanged In Bangladesh

guru — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 19:50:18 +0000

The interest rate on 15-Year Bangladesh Government Treasury Bonds (BGTB) remained unchanged Tuesday as the rate failed to attract interest from commercial banks.

The yield, also known as coupon interest rate, on the 15-Year BGTB was 8.74 percent, unchanged from the previous auction on Jan.13, according to auction results issued Tuesday.

“The interest rate on the bond has been fixed in line with the market demand,” a senior official of the Bangladesh Bank (BB), the country’s central bank, told official without elaborating.

Eighteen bidders offered bids amounting to US$17.46 million (BDT 1.21 billion) for the risk-free government bond. Only four bids amounting to $4.62 million (BDT 320 million) were accepted.

About $9.81 million (BDT 680 million) was devolved on primary dealers, the central bank of Bangladesh said.

“Most of the banks expect that the demand for fresh investment would go up in the near future and then the interest rate on the long-term security would increase further,” said a senior treasury official of a private commercial bank..

The central bank earlier selected 15 PDs – 12 commercial banks and three non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) – to handle government-approved securities in the secondary market.

Currently, four government bonds are traded in the markets: 5-year, 10-year, 15-year and 20-year

Taka falls against Dollar.
Bangladesh taka (BDT) fell further against the US dollar on Monday following a rise in demand for the greenback in the inter-bank foreign exchange market.

The US dollar was traded between Tk 69.27 and Tk 69.31 in the foreign exchange market on the day against Tk 69.27 of the previous day, treasury officials said.

The BDT has been depreciating since January 24 this year following an increase in demand for the greenback in the inter-bank market to settle payments for import of petroleum products, scrap vessels, edible oil and food grains.

“The exchange rate between BDT and the US dollar has been re-fixed in line with the market demand,” a senior official of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) told the FE, adding that the central bank is monitoring the country’s foreign exchange market closely to keep it stable.

“The upward trend of US dollar is likely to continue for a few more days if the central bank refrains from intervening in the market,” a senior treasury official of a leading private commercial bank told FE.

He also said the demand for the greenback might decline shortly after easing pressures on payments for petroleum products, scrap vessels, edible oil and food grains particularly wheat.

By Blogsdna

Bangladesh is advised to follow Singapore to reach Digital Bangladesh

guru — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 07:32:07 +0000

Today the entire world is gradually becoming a Digital Planet. Almost every state is heading towards a knowledge-based society and Bangladesh cannot stay away from the advantages out of it. Though it is very easy to speak about such a dream, i.e. making a country
The golden jubilee of the independence of Bangladesh would be observed in 2021. The country has already fixed its target of achieving ‘Digital Bangladesh’ by that time. It is a timely expectation for proper positioning the country among other hi-tech countries globally. A country goes digital means it will be an e-state means all its activities of governance, commerce, education, agriculture etc., will be powered by computer and internet. Today information communication technology (ICT) drives the technological and economic advancement of the developed as well as emerging economies. The goal of establishing such digital country would bring success in the ICT sector, which cannot be ignored in this 21st century. Heading towards that target will link every device such as cell phone, internet, computer, e-learning, e-governance etc.

The World Bank asked Bangladesh on Wednesday to follow experiences and practices of Singapore in information and communication technology (ICT) to achieve its vision for a digital country by 2021.

“Digital Bangladesh has generated public excitement and support, challenged the government to new ways of working and thinking … and solve problems through ICT,” said Ellen Goldstein, country director of World Bank in Bangladesh.

“Drawing on the Singapore example, the Bangladesh government’s vision of Digital Bangladesh can be a catalyst to improve service delivery to citizens and business in Bangladesh…and accelerate the country’s development through the new knowledge economy,” she said.

“This technology has become pervasive in our daily lives, and it has so much potential that we have to fully tap, here in Bangladesh,” she told a seminar on the occasion of Singapore ICT Day.

Singapore has been consistently ranked as one of the top countries in e-governance and for ease of doing business. Today in Singapore, over 2,000 government services are available online.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina set a goal for her impoverished south Asian country to become fully digital by year 2021 in line with her efforts to improve economy, cut poverty and make Bangladesh a middle-income nation by then.

Her government has started supplying computers in schools in the remotest areas of the country and hiring skilled teachers side by side with offering free education up to grade 12, officials said.

Verghese Mathews, the High Commissioner of Singapore in Bangladesh, said that the e-Government systems aimed at increasing the efficiency of the public sector, and improving transparency and good governance, all of which in turn enhanced overall business infrastructure.
More :Towards a digital Bangladesh

“There is the TradeNet system, which provides a single window for all trade permits and related matters. Then there is LawNet, an electronic filing for the judicial system; and, finally, the Online Business Licensing Services, which delivers integrated cross-agency services through one platform,” the High Commissioner said
We will follow you to eradicate corruption as Singapore is a corruption free country and a successful model in ICT,” said Abdul Awal Mazumder, secretary, ministry of science and ICT of Bangladesh.

He said that over the next 12 years Bangladesh planned to introduce IT systems in all government offices, trade and business to alleviate poverty, create more jobs and eradicate corruption.

Yeong Wee Tan, a senior official of Singapore-based IDA International Pte Limited, said that in the 1960s Singapore was a loan recipient of the World Bank and had since progressed to a point where individual GDP (in Singapore) has now reached $34,000.

“With the help of IT we achieved tremendous success as it is very vibrant in our country and South Asian nations including Bangladesh can reap the fruits of our experiences,” Wee Tan said in his presentation.

By Blogsdna

Bangladeshi satellite with help of leading countries for future security

guru — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 20:12:52 +0000

Future problems in space with satellite attacks. Many countries are now beginning to get their own defence satellites. Satellites are vulnerable but extremely important for defence.-guru

Bangladesh plans to launch its own communications satellite within a year, Post and Telecommunications Minister Raziuddin Ahmed Raju said yesterday.

The cost of the programme will be between $150 million and $200 million, he said.

The minister disclosed the government plan to reporters during a media briefing.

“We’ve already started talking to different countries including the US, Japan and China, to help us launch our own satellite,” the minister told The Daily Star over the phone.

The satellite would serve commercial purposes including improving telecom services, helping to meet the booming demand for it. Telecom operators could subscribe to satellite services on a commercial basis, the minister added.

Television broadcasting, and meteorological data including disaster warnings would be available easily by the satellite. It might also be used for mapping natural resources, and to predict weather to help farmers, experts said.

“We are very serious. We hope to give the people the good news soon,” said Raju.

He said the government is discussing the technical aspects with the US, Japan and China that have vast experience in the field. Some other countries are also showing interest, he added.

After assessing the proposals of interested countries, the government will pick the one that is most favourable for Bangladesh, the telecom minister said.

“Financing by the interested country will be an important criterion for awarding the contract,” he said.

Experts have welcomed the venture saying that satellite technology would provide quality and faster telecom services to the people, and reduce the risks associated with natural calamities.

“A satellite of our own can benefit us a lot, including better weather forecasting and survey of mineral resources,” said Satya Prasad Majumder, a professor of electrical engineering and electronics at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet).

Currently, Bangladesh subscribes to information about its mineral resources from the US, he said.

Majumder said a satellite could also help control mass communication traffic, such as television and radio broadcasting.

“You don’t need a cable TV network if you have satellite services,” the Buet professor also an expert on communication technology told The Daily Star.

Syed Margub Morshed, former chairman of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission said a satellite can give a country uninterrupted communication services.

?If the fibre optic cable is snapped, services will remain undisturbed through VSAT for the satellite,” he said.

There are several thousand satellites in space, launched by more than 50 countries. Bangladesh’s neighbours India and Pakistan launched their own satellites in 1980 and 1990 respectively.

By Blogsdna

New police unit for protection of tourists

guru — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 03:02:05 +0000

Considering the importance of tourism ,Bangladesh has formed a new police unit to ensure more protection for local and foreign tourists and tourism spots in the South Asian country, a senior spokesman of Bangladesh Police said on Sunday.

????”We’ve formed the new unit — Tourist Police — to ensure foolproof security of all local and foreign tourists in the country,” Assistant Inspector General of Bangladesh Police Md Nazrul Islam told Xinhua on Sunday.

????He said the newly formed Tourist Police unit, which started its journey on Sunday from the country’s southeastern Cox’s Bazar Sea Beach, some 391 km away of capital city Dhaka, will expand its network to other tourist spots.

????Side by side ensuring security, Islam said the police unit has also been assigned for conducting rescue operations.

????Another main task for this particular unit is to look after the nature and wildlife in the tourist spots, he said, adding “We hope that the foundation of the unit will help restore more confidence among local and foreign tourists regarding safety and security.”

????According to statistics of the country’s National Tourism Authority (NTA), a total of 349,837 foreign tourists visited Bangladesh in 2008, about 21 percent higher than that in 2007.

????Despite the rise in number of tourists’ visits, the incomes from the tourism sector in 2008 came down to 4. 60 billion taka (about 65.7 million U.S. dollars) in 2008 from 5.27 billion taka (about 75.3 million U.S. dollars) in 2007, the NTA figure showed.

????The lack of adequate security and poor infrastructure were largely blamed for lower tourist arrivals in the country’s many remote tourism spots, which officials said virtually prompted the authorities to create the new unit.

By Blogsdna

gurumia.com » Security

Bangladesh Village of extortionist(Lundhi village ) dicovered by RAB

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