Arakan Army abducts 3 Bangladeshis from Naf River
Myanmar armed terrorist group Arakan Army (AA) has abducted three Bangladeshis along with their boat from river Naf in the Leda area of Hnila union in Teknaf.
The abductees were identified as Siddique Hossain, 27, Rabiul Alam, 27 and Mahmud Hossain, 30. They are residents of East Leda Lamarpara village in the union.
Acting chairman of Hnila union parishad, Mohammad Ali confirmed the matter to Prothom Alo.
The Arakan Army took over the city of Maungdaw in Rakhine state of Myanmar on 8 December after 11 months of clash with the Myanmar Junta.
Their activities along the Naf River and various points of the Bay of Bengal have increased since then. Crimes like abducting Bangladeshi fishermen with their trawler have also increased simultaneously. The local fishermen blamed the Arakan Army for these incidents.
Hnila union acting chairman Mohammad Ali told Prothom Alo those who were abducted today were not fishermen. Nobody knows why they went there. However, they had informed the locals before getting onboard. The Arakan Army opened fire towards them after seeing their boat and chased them down and eventually abducted them. The district administration has been notified, the UP chairman said.
The local fishermen also confirmed the abduction. Quoting them, Hnila union parishad member from ward no. 8, Nurul Huda said the Arakan Army abducted them at gunpoint.
Teknaf upazila nirbahi officer, Sheikh Ehsan Uddin said, “The Arakan Army imposed a ban on fishing and boat movement on Naf River after taking over the Rakhine state in December. I have been informed about the abduction of three persons today. We are looking into the matter.”
Speaking regarding this, Teknaf-2 BGB battalion captain Colonel Ashikur Rahman said, “I heard about the incident. However, it is not yet clear whether they are fishermen or drug peddlers as we have seized several big consignments of drugs recently from the area.”
Since December last year, the Arakan Army has abducted as many as 204 Bangladeshi fishermen so far from river Naf and different points of the Bay of Bengal. The Border Guard Bangladesh has rescued 189 of them.