Blasts, gunfire during 'final assault' on terror den outside Moulvibazar town

Intense gunfire and blasts could be heard as security forces launched an assault on a militant hideout on the outskirts of Moulvibazar town after the weather cleared in the northeastern district..

A senior law-enforcement officer involved in 'Operation Hit Back' said the assault by SWAT is in its ‘final stage’.

Raids in the Nasirpur neighbourhood resumed around 10:30am on Thursday, after being halted by lack of light the previous night and bad weather in the early morning.

The bomb disposal and anticrime officers, who will start their work after the SWAT assault ends, have been kept on standby on the spot.

Officials said they plan to use drones to inspect the situation inside before letting other units enter the premises.

Meanwhile, efforts are ongoing to storm the other militant hideout in Moulavibazar town's Barhahaat.

Efforts are ongoing to storm the militant hideout in Moulvibazar town's Barhahaat.

Counter-terrorism Unit chief Monirul Islam visited the scene around 11am. Speaking to the media later, he said they would move in after the assault at Nasirpur ends.

"We have conducted a reconnaissance here and we are now planning the operation. An assault will be launched as soon as we are done with Nasirpur," he said.

A deputy inspector general of the Bangladesh Police, Islam had said then that they were yet to take control of the Nasirpur hideout. "Once that is done, we can say how many people were inside and what we are dealing with."

Barhahaat raid after Nasirpur assault: Counter-terrorism chief

 

Early on Wednesday, security forces surrounded the two houses within hours of the end of Operation Twilight in the neighbouring district of Sylhet.
 
'Operation Hit Back' at the Nasirpur terror den was launched around 6:30pm amid rain, with gunfire continuing for 30 minutes.

Assistant Superintendent of Police M Mainuddin, the commanding officer of Rapid Action Battalion's Srimangal camp, told bdnews24.com that the assault was suspended due to lack of light.

Bomb disposal and anticrime officers have been kept on standby at the scene in Nasirpur.

“We will brief the media at Nasirpur if we have something at the end of the assault. Otherwise, a briefing will be held after the raid on the house in the town finishes,” Moulvibazar Superintendent of Police Md Shahjalal told bdnews24.com.

As many as 10 people, including women and children, might be in the houses, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan told the media in Dhaka on Wednesday.

Soon after the houses were cordoned off, the local administration imposed Section 144 restricting movement of vehicles and pedestrians in the areas where the two houses are located.

Gas and power connections have also been cut off. The district administration used loudspeakers to advise the residents to stay safe.
 


Meanwhile in Comilla, police sealed off a house, possibly being used as a terror den, at Kotbari on the outskirts of the city on Wednesday afternoon.

Security forces maintained the cordon on Thursday and waiting for the city corporation elections to end.