Cox’s Bazar Correspondent: Arkan Rohingya Salvation Army (Arsa) Gun Group Commander Zakaria has been arrested. He is a resident of Block F/17 of Balukhali No. 10 Rohingya Camp and is the son of the deceased Ali Johar. At this time, a G-3 rifle used by the Myanmar law enforcement forces and five rounds of live ammunition were seized. RAB-15 members raided the Ukhia No. 10 Rohingya camp area of Cox’s Bazar district on Thursday (June 13) night.
Senior Assistant Director (Law & Media) of RAB-15 Cox’s Bazar Office, Additional Superintendent of Police Md. Abu Salam Chowdhury, confirmed the matter.
He said that the intelligence wing of the Bangladesh Army’s 10th Infantry Division and RAB intelligence members received information that some members of the terrorist group Arsa had brought weapons from Myanmar to the Rohingya camp for sabotage in Rohingya camp No. 10 of Ukhia in Cox’s Bazar. Based on this source, RAB members conducted a special operation in Ukhia Balukhali No. 10 Rohingya camp on Thursday night, June 13. At this time, when he realized the presence of RAB, the Arsa terrorist tried to escape. Zakaria (32) was arrested. He admitted on the spot that he was a forcibly displaced Myanmar national and a gun group commander of the terrorist organization Arsa, currently involved in killing missions in Rohingya camps.
The weapon used in the killing mission is hidden in the Palangkhali Union Ghat Bill. Later, the RAB raid team went to the place with the arrested Arsa terrorist and managed to recover 1 G-3 rifle and 5 rounds of fresh ammunition used by the law enforcement forces of the neighboring country, Myanmar.
It is also known that the arrested Zakaria crossed the border from Myanmar to Bangladesh in 2017 and started living with his family in Camp 10. During his stay in Myanmar, Arsa’s top commander, Ataullah Abu Ammar Jununi, developed good relations and joined Arsa. At the beginning of his entry into Bangladesh, he worked as an active member of the ARSA net team, i.e., correspondent, and later as a member of Gun Group. Then, at the end of 2023, he was appointed as Block Commander of Block-F/17 of Rohingya Camp-10. At that time, under his leadership, various crimes, including kidnapping, weapons, drugs, extortion, and torture of ordinary Rohingyas, were conducted in the Rohingya camp with other members of Arsa.
In 2022, a senior officer of the intelligence agency was killed in an attack by Arsa terrorists during a joint anti-narcotics operation by the intelligence agency and RAB, and he fled back to Myanmar when the law and order forces increased their activity in the camp area. Later, when the situation normalized, he again entered Bangladesh and participated in various killing missions and criminal activities as a gun group commander. Being skilled in weapons, he used to participate in various sabotage, fights, destabilization, kidnapping, weapons, drugs, extortion, and killing missions organized in Rohingya camps.
Arsa terrorists used to buy weapons looted from the ongoing conflict in Myanmar in exchange for money and bring them to Bangladesh through various means. Later, the arrested Zakaria kept this weapon hidden from him. Then the Arsa of Camp-10 was handed over to the commander, and these weapons were used in various criminal activities in the camp. The Ukhia police station in Cox’s Bazar has multiple cases against the arrested Zakaria for various crimes. It is also said that he served two prison terms.
Apart from this, RAB has been conducting anti-terrorist operations and round-the-clock monitoring for crime control at various times. Arsa Military Commander Hafez Noor Mohammad, Finance Editor Maulana Mohammad Yunus, Gun Commander Rahimullah Mucha, Finance Coordinator Mohammad Ershad Prakash Noman Chowdhury, Abu Taib, Killer Group Chief Noor Kamal alias Samiuddin, and Intelligence Cell Commander Osman Gani were arrested in the hands of RAB through various anti-terrorist operations. Also, Arsa arrested 117 terrorists, including the head of the logistics branch, the head of the music group, the chief coordinator, the head of the finance branch, and the bodyguards of Arsa Chief Ataullah Akiz and Maulvi Ali Akiz. 53.71 kg of explosives, 5 grenades, 3 rifle grenades, 10 indigenous hand grenades, 14 foreign firearms, 56 indigenous firearms, 178 rounds of bullets or cartridges, 67 rounds of empty shells, 4 IDs, and 48 The cocktail is recovered.
