Locals catch 17 men suspected to be militants in Kulaura

Seventeen suspected members of the new militant group 'Imam Mahmuder Kafela' were captured and held by locals at the Kormodha area of Kulaura upazila in Moulvibazar on Monday.

They were detained from Asgarbad CNG stand at around 10:30pm. They are now held at the local Union Parishad (UP) office.

Earlier on Saturday, the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) branch of police conducted a drive at a house in Kulaura upazila of Moulvibazar and detained eight alleged militants. Among them, 5 were female and 3 were male.

Kulaura Police Station Officer in Charge Abdus Saleh confirmed the matter to the Daily Samakal.

Kulaura's Kormoda Union Parishad Chairman Muhibul Islam Azad said the house was surrounded by the CTTC since 8pm on Friday. Later, they started a drive at around 7am on Saturday. The drive is ongoing. The newly-made house is located atop a hill in the Baishali Bari area of Tatti Uli village in the union.

UP member Darach Miah said he brought the detained to the UP office with the help of Village Police.

Karmadha UP Chairman Muhibul Islam confirmed the matter. He said the incident was reported to the police who are now interrogating the detained men. Their identities could not be confirmed yet. Kulaura Police Station Officer in Charge Md Abdus Salek also confirmed the matter.

/KN/