Bangladesh police seize bomb-making materials in Dhaka, arrest one

Dhaka: Days after an explosion near the Jatrabari Police Station in Dhaka, explosive materials used for making crude bombs and 9,000 paper masks were recovered by police, leading to the arrest of one individual, during a raid in the Bangladeshi capital's South Keraniganj area, media reports said.

The accused has been identified as 30-year-old Zahid Hasan Emon, according to the Dhaka Tribune.

According to sources at Shyampur Model Police Station, police launched an investigation after a crude bomb exploded in front of Jatrabari Police Station on September 19.

Police reportedly received information during the probe regarding Emon’s alleged involvement in the incident. He was arrested from the Baghapur area on Friday.

Investigators also seized five kg of marbles, two kg of one-inch barbed nails, 20 pieces of red cellophane tape, and 11 pieces of black cellophane tape allegedly used to wrap crude bombs, the media report stated.

Moreover, police have also recovered 9,000 paper masks packed in three cartons, 30 packets of elastic used to wear the masks, and a Jaipan-brand blender and jar allegedly used to grind materials for making crude bombs.

The investigation into the September 19 explosion and the alleged role of the accused is currently underway.

Earlier, a report stated that Bangladesh is facing a terror threat that extends far beyond the five-member cell allegedly led by Neo-Jamaat-ul Mujahideen Bangladesh member Bomaru Mamun, with at least 311 members of banned terrorist organisations still at large as of April 2026.

The figure includes 16 Neo-JMB operatives, 185 members of the original JMB, 83 from Ansar Al Islam and sixteen from Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami Bangladesh, highlighting the scale of the threat confronting the authorities, a report has stated.

These are not merely isolated names on a police watchlist but reflect successive generations of jihadist militancy, ranging from Afghanistan-linked veterans of HuJI-B to Islamic State-inspired Neo-JMB cadres and the digitally focused operatives of Ansar Al Islam, according to a 'Stringer Asia' report.

“For several years, Bangladesh appeared to have solved its jihadist problem. The security forces had dismantled networks, killed or arrested senior commanders and disrupted the organisational structure responsible for the 2016 Holey Artisan Bakery massacre. Neo-Jamaat-ul Mujahideen Bangladesh, the Islamic State-inspired faction that had briefly turned Dhaka into one of the most visible fronts of international jihadism, seemed to have been reduced to scattered fugitives and online sympathisers. The bombs now reappearing around Dhaka suggest that the victory may have been less definitive than advertised,” the report detailed.

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