Counter-terror police has made two more arrests over the five incidents of bomb attacks on members of Dhaka metro police (DMP) in the capital last year.
Jamal Uddin Rafiq, 26, and Anwar Hossain, 25, were arrested from the city's Shanir Akhra late on Sunday (Jan 19) by the DMP's Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit.
Speaking at a media call on Monday (Jan 20), CTTC chief Monirul Islam said that suspect Rafiq, who graduated from the Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET), was at the scenes of the five bombings.
"He had been affiliated with Ansar Al Islam before joining the Neo-JMB and recruited his brother and two friends from KUET," he said.
According to the country's top counter-terror officer the attacks were "symbolic" and aimed to spread panic. "They wanted to convey the message that if police themselves are being attacked, how they can save others."
Between Apr 29 and Aug 31, 2019, improvised explosive devices (IED) were hurled at police in Dhaka's Gulistan, Malibagh, Science Lab, Paltan and Farmgate.