'Extremist' Islamic orator Mufti Amir Hamza arrested

The Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has arrested Mufti Amir Hamza, described as an "extremist" Islamic speaker, on charges of spreading extremism under the guise of religion.

He was arrested from a village in the Islamic University Thana area of Kushtia on Monday, CTTC Joint Commissioner Ilias Sharif told UNB.

He said they arrested a young man named Shakib from the parliament area with a sword on May 5 after finding information that he was planning an attack. A case over the incident was filed with Sher-e-Banglanagar police under the Terrorism Control Act recently.

Shakib later gave a confessional statement before a Dhaka magistrate’s court, and the CTTC unit arrested Mufti Hamza Based on his statement, the CTTC unit official said.