US embassy cable - 05DHAKA2222

C O N F I D E N T I A L DHAKA 002222 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
NOFORN 
VISAS VIPER 
 
DEPT FOR INR/IC/TIPOFF AND CA/VO/L/C 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/10/2015 
TAGS: KFRD, CVIS, PTER, PINS, ASEC, Visas Viper 
SUBJECT: DHAKA VISA VIPER REPORT - APR 2005 
 
REF: A. DHAKA 1308 
     B. DHAKA 1851 (NOTAL) 
 
Classified By: DCM JUDITH A. CHAMMAS, Reason: 1.4b 
 
 1. (C/NF)  Post Visa Viper committe met on May 1, 2005.  The 
committe received a briefing from visiting RAO analysts 
regarding the state of the Islamist movement in Bangladesh. 
The Committee decided to nominate several leaders of outlawed 
radical Islamist groups (Ref A) for inclusion in the Visas 
Viper program. 
 
2.  (U)  As noted in Ref A, the government of Bangladesh 
recently outlawed several radical Islamist groups, the 
Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and the Jagrata Muslim 
Janata Bangladesh (JMJB).  Many leaders of these two groups 
remain in police custody, though other, lower-level, members 
have been released. 
 
3.  (C/NF)  Post wishes to nominate the following individuals 
for inclusion in the Visas Viper program: 
A.  NAME: al-Galib, Muhammad Asadullah 
DPOB: 01 NOV 1950, Bangladesh 
Affiliation:  Leader of the Ahle Hadith Andolon Bangladesh 
(AHAB), a radical Islamist group which opposes most social 
and cultural reform in Bangladesh as "un-Islamic".  The AHAB 
has spawned the two groups recently banned by the government. 
 The JMB is alleged to be the military wing of AHAB, and the 
JMJB appears to be mainly composed of AHAB members and was 
formed to counter supposed leftist/Communist influence and 
criminality in northwestern Bangladesh.  As noted in Ref A, 
the JMB and JMJB are accused of perpetrating a number of 
attacks on "un-Islamic" targets in northwestern Bangladesh in 
early 2005.  The government believes that al-Galib instigated 
several IED attacks against cultural events in early 2005, 
though he claims he has called only for "rhetorical jihad". 
Local intelligence agencies report that al-Galib has 
travelled to India, Kuwait, Bahrain, Nepal, and Pakistan in 
the recent past.  In Kuwait, he met with a Salaafist leader. 
AHAB receives some funding from a Kuwait-based NGO, the 
Revival of Islamic Heritage Society (RIHS).  The Bangladesh 
government has frozen the local accounts of RIHS as it 
investigates al-Galib and his associates.  The government 
continues to build its case against al-Galib and his 
associates, vowing to put them away for a long time. 
COMMENT:  Although Islamist organizations in Bangladesh are 
primarily focused on internal affairs, al-Galib's travel 
patterns and links suggest he has ties with regional and 
international Islamist movements.  Such ties could 
conceivably evolve in a closer working relationship in the 
future, should time and circumstances permit. 
 
B.  NAME:  RAHMAN, Siddiqur (AKA Bangla Bhai) 
DPOB: UNK, Bangladesh 
Affiliation:  Operational commander of the JMJB whose 
exploits have received wide coverage in the local press. 
Although the government has claimed to have made great 
efforts to capture Bangla Bhai, he remains at large, possibly 
in India. While many of the JMJB's attacks were allegedly 
against "un-Islamic" targets, many seem to be simply crime 
dressed up in Islamist garb.  Although a number of JMJB 
members have been arrested, no significant arms caches have 
been seized.  Seizures have been limited to locally-produced 
black powder used in IEDs. 
 
C.  NAME:  ISLAM, Nurul (AKA ISLAM, Maulana Nurul) 
DPOB: 01 OCT 1963 , Bangladesh 
Affiliation:  Senior associate of Dr. al-Galib and senior 
member of AHAB. 
 
D.  NAME:  SALAFI, Shaikh Abdus Samad 
DPOB: 02 AUG 1946, Bangladesh 
Affiliation: Senior associate of Dr. al-Galib and senior 
member of AHAB. 
 
E.  NAME:  AZIZULLAH, ASM 
DPOB: 28 FEB 1976, Bangladesh 
Affiliation:  Senior associate of Dr. al-Galib and senior 
member of AHAB. 
 
4. (U)  Visas Viper Committee meeting was chaired by DCM 
Judith A. Chammas and acting consular section chief Robert 
Jachim acted as coordinator. 
 
THOMAS