The Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HuT, 'Party of Liberation'), a global Islamist organization seeking the imposition of Shariah (Islamic Law) across the world, is growing into a major focus of concern in Bangladesh and Pakistan over the past years. Colonel T.M. Jobaer, Director of National Security Intelligence (NSI), Bangladesh, thus argues, "Of all the Islamic outfits, Hizb-ut-Tahrir is currently the biggest threat... The organisation is strong because it has a strong international agenda -- it wants to establish a Khilafat (the Islamic Caliphate) in many countries".
On October 12, 2011, nine HuT cadres were arrested in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, while they were trying to bring out a procession in front of the city's Baitul Mukarram, the National Mosque, demanding the release of the outfit's top leaders and the establishment of Khilafat rule in the country.
On June 21, 2011, the Pakistan Army arrested Brigadier Ali Khan at Rawalpindi over his alleged links with HuT. He had been picked up for questioning on May 6, 2011, but the arrest was announced on June 21. Pakistan's military spokesman, Major General Athar Abbas, when asked to confirm, stated, "Yes, it is correct that he is under detention over his alleged links to the militant group Hizb-ul-Tahrir and an investigation is going on".
A study conducted by the Bangladesh Enterprise Institute claimed that HuT was slowly gaining ground and was currently the strongest force in anti-state activities in Bangladesh.
According to the partial data collected by the Institute for Conflict Management, a total of 278 HuT cadres have been arrested in these two countries since March 10, 2000 - 207 in Bangladesh and 71 in Pakistan. Some of the significant arrests included:
September 30, 2011: Three cadres of HuT were arrested by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) personnel in Dhaka, when they were distributing leaflets in front of Baitul Mukarram.
September 14, 2011: RAB-2 personnel arrested two cadres of HuT, identified as Towhidur Rahman (22) and Tariqul Hasan Ashiq (18), from a house in the Hajaribagh area of Dhaka city.
July 27, 2011: RAB arrested Mahmudul Bari, adviser of HuT (Bangladesh), from Shahjalal International Airport while he was trying to leave for Malaysia.
July 2, 2011: 18 HuT cadres were arrested from Paltan area in Dhaka City. RAB also arrested four from Jhikatola and Mohammadpur in Dhaka District.
July 3, 2011: Senior HuT member, Professor Dr. Sheikh Tawfique, was arrested in Dhaka.
June 6, 2011: RAB personnel arrested 27 cadres of HuT form Barakaw village of the Kaliganj Sub-district of Gazipur District in Bangladesh. They also recovered anti-State posters, leaflets and magazines, as well as books on jihad.
April 18, 2011: Police arrested 18 HuT cadres from Qartaba Chowk in Lahore, Pakistan. They were carrying out a protest march criticizing the United States (US) and Pakistan Governments.
July 8, 2010: The Detective Branch of Bangladesh Police arrested a Professor of Dhaka University, identified as Syed Golam Maola, who introduced the HuT into the country, from Dhaka's Elephant Road area. Maola was accused in three cases filed with the Uttara Police Station in Dhaka, under the Anti-Terrorism Act, 2009.
April 20, 2010: Police arrested HuT Bangladesh 'chief coordinator' Mahiuddin Ahmed from the capital, Dhaka. The HuT 'second-in-command' was also arrested by the Intelligence Wing of RAB, from his Mohammadpur house in Dhaka.
October 19, 2009: The Margalla Police raided the HuT office in Pakistan's capital city, Islamabad, and arrested 35 persons. The Police claimed to have recovered 'sensitive' material from the office.
May 4, 2009: Former Commanding Officer of Shamsi Air Force Base, Colonel Shaid Bashir, a retired Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Squadron Leader, Lawyer Nadeem Ahmad Shah, and US-educated mechanical engineer Awais Ali Khan were arrested for their connections with HuT and for leaking sensitive information to the outfit.
March 30, 2007: Police arrested 22 HuT cadres in Dhaka's Mohammadpur area. The arrested militants were holding a secret meeting at a house on the third floor of a five-storied building at Aziz Mohalla in the area. Police recovered leaflets, posters, compact disks (CDs) and books from the house.
September 16, 2004: Three cadres of the HuT were arrested during separate raids in Lahore. The arrested activists, identified as Abdul Waheed, Bilal Saleem and Hakeem Yasir Rehman Jigranvi, were reportedly accused of distributing anti-state material.
HuT in Pakistan and Bangladesh are parts of the global Sunni political party, established in Jerusalem in the year 1953 by Taqi al-Din al-Nibhani, a Palestinian religious cleric, with the aim of replacing the then colonial regime of Jordan with Islamic rule. The current global leader of HuT is Shaykh Ata Abu Rashta, a Palestinian civil engineer.
At the global level, HuT has extended its presence into 45 countries. However, it is banned in virtually all Arab nations in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and in Turkey; in South Asia in Pakistan and Bangladesh; in all the former Soviet States in Central Asia, including Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan; and also in Russia. In Europe, it has been banned in Germany and in the Netherlands. The Governments of United Kingdom (UK) and Australia are also under pressure to ban the outfit.
HuT claims to be a non-violent organization, seeking