Police effort on to nab Zia, Marzan
After killing the mastermind of the Gulshan caf attack, Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury, and two other militants, Iqbal and Manik, yesterday, law enforcement and intelligence agencies are now on the lookout for two fugitivesMaj. (retd) Syed Mohammad Ziaul Huq, alias Major Zia, and Nurul Islam, alias Marzan. The law enforcement agencies circulated seven pictures of Zia in different dresses and get-up. According to them, Zia is the mastermind of all militant attacks in the country. The police have placed a bounty of Tk. 20 lakh on his head. The police said Zia and Marzan are hiding in the country, but intelligence agencies feel that in all probability Zia has left Bangladesh. Talking to this correspondent, a senior officer of an intelligence agency said they are searching for the two culprits across the country.
The Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit chief, Monirul Islam, said they are trying to trace their location and also seeking information from people. Zia is the chief of the militant group, Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), and the mastermind of the recent militant attacks at the Gulshan caf and Sholakiya Eidgah that claimed 29 lives. Zia, or Major Zia, also masterminded a military coup attempt in 2012, and is said to be behind the killing of bloggers. Zia is the son of Syed Mohammad Zillul Haque of Moulvibazar. His last address was Polash, Mirpur Cantonment. On August 12, the CTTC unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) identified Marzan as one of the masterminds of the recent militant attacks in the country. Marzan was staying in Kalyanpur from where he contacted and monitored the Gulshan attackers.
