At least two alleged ‘militants’ were killed when elite police force Rapid Action Battalion raided a suspected militant hideout that they had cordoned off earlier at the capital’s Mohammadpur, said RAB.

“We can’t yet say for sure exactly how many people died. The house is a mess,” RAB Director General Benazir Ahmed told the media on Monday (Apr 29) while visiting the scene.

“We suspect that at least two people have been killed,” he said and added that they can specify the number after the whole house has been cleaned.

Ahmed said that RAB officers asked the caretaker of the house to knock on the residents.

“They noticed us and opened fire and we fired back,” he added saying that they fired around 150 round of ammunition.

“They hurled Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at us after which they blasted off the house.”

Responding to queries on which militant outfit they belonged to, Ahmed said that details will be provided later.

Earlier RAB media wing chief Mufti Mahmud Khan had said that one person was killed in the raid and they suspected that no one survived

RAB entered the tin-shed house at Bosila’s Metro Housing after the bomb disposal unit arrived on Monday (Apr 29).

Three gun-shots went off when the bomb disposal unit broke into the house that was cordoned off in the early hours.

Fire breaks out at the hideout:

A fire broke out at the suspected militant den during the ongoing raid of RAB.

The house, constructed mainly with tin and bamboo was rented by two men saying they were van drivers, one-and-half month ago.

“The fire broke out due to the presence of a few explosives inside the house,” said Mufti Mahmud Khan.

Firefighters reached the scene to douse the flames.

How it unfolded:

Earlier, RAB cordoned off the house at Bosila’s Metro Housing at 3 am after evacuating people of the nearby buildings to a safe spot.

RAB-2 chief Ashique Billah who reached the scene on Monday (Apr 29) morning said that that a patrol team went there at midnight based on intelligence they had of a militant den there.

“They opened fire on RAB from inside. We took position and fired back,” he said.

The RAB-2 chief said that a few cocktail bombs went off inside the house followed by the sounds of a bigger explosion.