Bangladesh police seized explosives and bomb-making materials yesterday from a hideout used by Jama’atul-Mujahideen militants believed to be behind a spate of recent attacks in the south Asian nation, a police spokesman said.
Muslim-majority Bangladesh has seen a rise in Islamist violence in the last year, including the killing of several liberal activists and attacks on minority Shia Muslims, a Christian priest and Hindu temples.
Police searched a house on the outskirts of Dhaka based on information from members of the banned Jamaatul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) captured in an earlier raid in the capital, said Maruf Hossain Sardar, a deputy commissioner of police.
A large amount of bomb-making equipment and explosives were found in the raid, he added.
The group is believed to be behind attacks such as the bombings of a Shia shrine and the killing of two foreigners.
Militant group Islamic State has claimed responsibility for some recent attacks, including the killing of a Hindu priest last week and an attack on a Shia Muslim mosque in November.
The government denies that Islamic State has a presence in Bangladesh, and instead blames Islamist political opponents for instigating violence in the nation of 160mn people.