Rangpur Metropolitan Police (RpMP) Commissioner Md Moniruzzaman at a workshop on Thursday said that the number of internet users in Bangladesh is doubling every three years, increasing the risk of online radicalisation, which is one of the main challenges of terrorism today.
“Additionally, a survey revealed that 82 per cent of youths are getting involved in terrorism through online and social media,” he said at the day-long workshop titled “Role of Teachers, Students, and Conscious Citizens in Combating Militancy and Terrorism,” held at the multipurpose hall of Police Staff College in Dhaka’s Mirpur area.
He stated in his presentation that terrorism is a global problem, and although various types of terrorist activities have existed since ancient times, the horrors of terrorism are currently spreading, with many countries falling victim to it.
Discussing the challenges in dealing with the risk, he said it is impossible to monitor the risky behaviour of about 66.94 million internet users.
“While the younger generation is efficient at using the internet, they lack cyber security awareness,” Moniruzzaman added.
Pointing out that more than 800 terrorists are in 68 prisons across the country, Moniruzzaman mentioned that due to the lack of proper management of the prisons, there is a clear possibility that terrorists will come into contact with extremist ideologies.
“The crime-politics-terrorism nexus is clearly a significant challenge for us,” he added.
Moniruzzaman warned that terrorist groups or vested interest groups might exploit the deprivation and anger of the forcibly displaced Rohingya population from Myanmar, potentially turning this population towards terrorism.
Regarding the history of terrorist groups in Bangladesh, the RpMP commissioner noted that organised religious extremism began in 1979-1992, which he considered the first stage of religious extremism.
Later, several extremist organisations emerged in a favourable environment with international and domestic indulgence, he said.
“The second stage saw the emergence of ‘Qital Fi-Sabilillah’ in 1996, which was renamed ‘Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB)’ in 1998,” Moniruzzaman added.
In the third phase, the formation and activities of Hizb ut-Tahrir began in 2000, he stated.
“Ansar al-Islam's activities started in 2014. Later, Jama'atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya, inspired by the ideology of New JMB and currently Al-Qaeda, became active,” he said.
Moniruzzaman highlighted that due to the strong stance of the Bangladesh government and law enforcement forces, the country has gained public trust and wide appreciation from the outside world in combating militancy and terrorism.
According to the review by Australia's Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), a continuous improvement in Bangladesh's position was observed in 2023 in the Global Terrorism Index based on 23 indicators (43rd in 2023, 40th in 2022, compared to 22nd in 2016), he added.
Bangladesh Police’s Additional IGP and Head of the Anti-Terrorism Unit, SM Ruhul Amin, said as the main speaker that combating militancy or terrorism requires the engagement of everyone, not just law enforcement agencies.
“And here, school, college, and university teachers and students can play a big role,” he added.
