Ansar camp attacked

A Battalion Ansar commander was shot dead as a camp of the force adjacent to Nayapara’s Rohingya shelter in Tekhnaf upazila in Cox’s Bazar was attacked and robbed of 11 rifles with several hundred bullets by ‘organised criminals’ wearing masks early Friday.
Police along with paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh and other agencies launched operations to capture the criminals and recover the weapons, police officials told New Age , adding that a few of the ‘listed criminals’ appeared in the locality a while before the attack on nine asleep Ansar members.
The 55-year-old commander of the camp, Ali Hossain of Tangail, was shot as he tried to resist the robbery of the armoury, the officials said.
After visiting the scene, Cox’s Bazar district magistrate Ali Hossain claimed that they identified the gang behind the attack and robbery.
‘We suspect it is a trans-boundary criminal group which is also active in Myanmar in drug peddling and other crimes,’ Ali said, adding that police, Rapid Action battalion, border guard, Ansar and intelligence agencies were working to recover the firearms. ‘Joint operation was launched at 3:00pm,’ he added.
He, however, said that the camp was ‘unprotected’ and no safety measures were followed in storing the arms and ammunition.
‘No rules and regulations were followed,’ the district magistrate said.
Ansar and VDP director general Major General Mijanur Rahman Khan could not be reached for comments.
Battalion Ansar Cox;s Bazar district commandant Dewan Mahtabur Rahman told New Age all eleven rifles and at least 570 bullets were robbed in the ‘sudden attack’ at about 2:20am on Friday.
Investigators, however, estimated that the number of bullets was nearly 700.
The district commandant said that nine Ansar members including the commander were asleep at the camp — an iron-sheet facility built in 1998 — near Rohingya shelter when 15-20 criminals attacked the camp.
The Ansar official said that the victims told them that the attackers spoke with local accent.
The camp, one of the three camps located on sought in the neighbourhood, was set up to maintain law and order at Nayapara registered shelter for Rohingya refugees at Teknaf near the river Naff, officials said.
Upazila Ansar commander Mustafa Kamal denied comments when he was asked if any of Ansar members was assigned for night duty at the camp and if the two nearby Ansar camps tried to resist the attack.
Another official in Cox’s Bazar said that the attackers hiding faces with masks swooped on camp and tied limbs and mouths of the Ansar members at gun point.
The attackers — many of whom were carrying sharp weapon and few others were with firearms — were looking for the key of the armoury, and asked Ansar commander Ali Hossain to hand over the key, the official said.
One of the attackers shot Ali Hossain. Ali was found lying in front of camp and declared dead after he was rushed to a nearby hospital once the attackers left the scene.
The attackers then robbed the weapons and ammunition and disappeared shortly, said a border guard official, adding, ‘They took hardly 15 minutes and left the place before the people in the neighbourhood could understand anything other than sound of bullet.’
‘We are stunned by the incident. It is unbelievable that 17-year-old camp meant for us could come under attack,’ said refugee camp resident Habib Ullah.
Habib, also a local school teacher, said that senior officials from the administration inspected the crime scene and patrolling continued.
The police officials said cases were filed and they were on operation to nab the attackers.
The law enforcing agencies restricted movement along the Myanmar border.
Border guards held 52 Myanmar citizens including women and children from Tumbro border area of Naikhyangchari in the morning.
Border guard officials said that the 52 Myanmar citizens of 12 families were trying to enter Bangladesh through Betbonia Bazar and Tumbro Westkhol of Tumbro border point.
The attack took place a day after the border guard authorities put its personnel on alert along the Myanmar border in Bandarban after six mortar shells were fired from neighbouring country on Wednesday night.

News Courtesy: www.newagebd.net