Attack on Prothom Alo: 38 arrested, many attackers still unidentified

A total of 38 people have so far been arrested in connection with the attack, vandalism, looting, and arson at the Prothom Alo building.

The investigating agency of the case said these individuals were identified and arrested by reviewing video footage from the time of the attack, still images, and live videos that spread on social media, while efforts are ongoing to identify others directly involved in the incident and those who took part in the attack.

On the night of 18 December 2025, an extremist group carried out an attack on the Prothom Alo building in Karwan Bazar, Dhaka. They broke the shutter of the building’s gate, entered inside, and carried out extensive destruction through vandalism, looting, and arson.

On the same night, they also attacked the offices of The Daily Star and Chhayanaut. According to police sources, a section of the attackers at Prothom Alo later joined the attack on The Daily Star building. The following Friday evening, Udichi office was also attacked and set on fire.

Among the arrested, 26 were arrested in the Prothom Alo case, and 11 were initially arrested in the case filed over the attack on The Daily Star building. Later, a total of 12 individuals already in jail—including those 11 from The Daily Star case—were shown arrested in the Prothom Alo case through court orders.

The arrested individuals are: Md Saidur Rahman, Md Mainul Islam, Md Qari Muaz Bin Abdur Rahman, Naim Islam, Md Sagar Islam, Md Jahangir, Md Sohel Mia, Md Hasan, Md Abdul Barek Sheikh, Abul Kashem, Md Pranto Sikder, Md Raju Ahmed, Niaz Mahmud Farhan, Md Aminul Islam, Azahar Ali, Md Hashem, Md Sohel Rana, Md Shafiqul Islam, Nazmul Hasan, Riazul Islam Suman, Md Yasin, Mohammad Russell, Md Nazrul Islam Minhaj, Md Rashedul Islam, Zakir Hossain Shanto, Md Biplob, Md Ahad Sheikh, Md Rubel Hossain, Zulfikar Ali Sourav, Md Almas Ali, Md Jubayer Hossain, Aynul Haque Kashemi, Abdur Rahman Palash, Md Jannatul Naim, Md Faisal Ahmed, Md Azmir Hossain Akash and Md Swapan Mondal.

Apart from them, Ataur Rahman Bikrampuri, who had been in jail under the Special Powers Act since 23 December on grounds of being a threat to public order, was shown arrested on 3 April in the Prothom Alo attack case. He is accused of gathering and incitement in Shahbagh.

One of the arrested, Mohammad Mainul Islam, was seen in a video footage celebrating with an axe in front of the burning building during the attack, vandalism, and arson at Prothom Alo. He was arrested by the Detective Branch (DB) from Uttara in Dhaka on 23 December. His village home is in Islabari village of Bagmara upazila in Rajshahi, and he resides in Uttara, Dhaka.

Another video footage shows a person standing at the scene during the attack, declaring in front of a private television camera that Prothom Alo and The Daily Star had been demolished. He said, “What we were supposed to do on 5 August, we could not. Today we have done it through the blessing of Hadi bhai.” Later, DB identified and arrested him. His name is Qari Muaz Bin Abdur Rahman. Police say he is a leader of the Shariatpur district unit of Jubo Majlis. His home is in Paschim Kandi village under Shariatpur Sadar police station.

Niaz Mahmud Farhan, who shared photos of the attack on the Prothom Alo building from the scene on Facebook and called on others to join the attack, has also been arrested. His village home is in Borhanuddin upazila of Bhola.

Zakir Hossain Shanto has been arrested by CTTC. His home is in Chakpatra village of Moshakhali under Gafargaon upazila in Mymensingh, and he resides in Hazaribagh, Dhaka. According to CTTC-related sources, Shanto was involved in vandalism at Prothom Alo and The Daily Star offices. He also made a live video from the scene and shared it from his Facebook account.

Among the arrested, 10 have been granted bail. They are Nazmul Hasan, Riazul Islam Suman, Md Yasin, Mohammad Russell, Md Nazrul Islam Minhaj, Md Rashedul Islam, Zakir Hossain Shanto, Md Biplob, Md Ahad Sheikh and Md Rubel Hossain.

Among them, a person named Altaf Hossain claimed in a Facebook post on 24 April from a page named “Boishommohin Karamukti Andolon” that he had secured bail for six of them. However, he did not mention which six individuals. The post also mentioned that cases of four more arrested individuals were being handled, including Ataur Rahman Bikrampuri.

According to police sources, after the 2024 mass uprising, there were attempts under the banner of “Boishommohin Karamukti Andolon” to stage protests and create mobs in front of various prisons demanding the release of individuals arrested at different times on allegations of involvement with extremist groups. Continuous propaganda against Prothom Alo has also been observed on this Facebook page.

Sources of the Dhaka Metropolitan Detective Police (DB), the investigating agency of the case, say that the identities of many individuals present at the scene during the attack are still not confirmed. Some of them directly took part in vandalism, looting, and arson. Others were present alongside the attackers, raising slogans, creating agitation, and being active around the time of the arson.

Syed Harun Or Rashid, Joint Commissioner of the Cyber Security and Support Center of DB, who is overseeing the case, told Prothom Alo yesterday (Wednesday) that the investigation is ongoing.

Various video footages and still images from the scene have been collected. These are being analysed, and efforts are underway using information technology to identify those involved in the incident and the planners.