Bangladesh police find arms in militant hideout

Police searched an apartment in the port city of Chittagong based on information from the three members of the banned Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen organisation caught in an earlier raid after busting their hideout. Chittagong city police commissioner Mohammad Abdul Jalil Mondal said a sniper rifle, ammunition, explosives, detonators, army uniforms and bomb-making materials were found in the apartment. The group was believed to be behind a series of recent attacks, including bombings of a Shi’ite shrine and the shooting of three foreigners, two of whom have died.

Bangladesh has suffered a wave of Islamist militant violence in recent months, including a series of attacks on mosques, Christian priests and Hindu temples. Islamic State has claimed responsibility for some of the attacks, including a bomb attack at a mosque of the minority Ahmmadiya Muslim community during prayers on Friday. The government has denied that Islamic State has a presence in the country of 160 million people.