New Militant Group ‘Itehadul Ummah’ Formed by Jailbreak Escapees, Raising Security Concerns

Staff Correspondent. Dhaka, October 13, 2026.

There are security concerns as a portion of the prisoners who escaped from various prisons in the country in 2024 have not been traced. Among the escapees were defendants in militancy-related cases. New questions have been raised about whether any of them are trying to regroup.

Detectives are investigating whether the organization has any connections to any foreign militant groups.

Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said the detainees were accused of planning to organize extremist activities to establish a caliphate. However, detailed information about the organization’s organizational structure, number of members, or their involvement in any armed activities was not disclosed.

The report, citing information from prison authorities, said that at least 690 prisoners escaped from various prisons in the country in July-August 2024. Among them were accused in militancy-related cases. It has been mentioned that at least 27 militants were among the prisoners who escaped from Narsingdi prison. These numbers need independent verification.

The report quoted Inspector General of Prisons Brigadier General Syed Motaher Hossain as saying that six of the escaped prisoners, who were accused of involvement with international militant organizations, had been re-arrested. The remaining three were missing, he said. However, details about their identities, status of the cases and their current whereabouts were not provided.

If any of the escapees from prison have rejoined extremist networks, it is a matter of significant investigation for law enforcement agencies. In this case, it is essential to identify the location of the escaped prisoners, verify their communication networks, and investigate possible sources of financing.

Meanwhile, the day after the Tejgaon incident, on September 19, three buses were set on fire in Mirpur and Madhya Badda in the capital and a pickup was set on fire in South Keraniganj. The report provided mentions that cocktail explosions also occurred in several places in the capital in the subsequent period.

However, the report did not present evidence to prove whether the detainees or any militant group were involved in these arson and explosion incidents. Therefore, it is necessary to know the results of the investigation before viewing the incidents as part of the same organized plan.

According to human rights activist Noor Khan Liton, there have been long-standing concerns about extremist activity in Bangladesh. In recent times, there have been questions about the potential for the groups to regroup and the effectiveness of monitoring them.

On the other hand, the report provided also mentions allegations of contact between a warrant officer of the Bangladesh Air Force and the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).