Joint operation begins on Wednesday to recover arms

The Ministry of Home Affairs has announced a joint operation starting Wednesday, involving both the armed forces and internal security personnel. The operation aims to recover all types of looted and stolen arms, as well as licensed weapons issued to civilians in the past 15 years.

The joint operation team, consisting of members from the armed forces, BGB, Police, RAB, and Ansar, will recover weapons that were not returned to police stations within the designated time, as well as those stolen or looted during mob attacks on police stations and units following the ouster of the Sheikh Hasina government.

During the operation, individuals in possession of illegal arms will face charges if they fail to surrender their weapons within the announced timeframe.

Interim Government Home Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury issued this directive on Sunday, according to Faisal Ahmed, the ministry's Public Relations Officer, who confirmed the announcement in a press release.

A notification signed last night by Arif-Uz-Zaman, Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, stated that members of the armed forces, BGB, Police, RAB, and Ansar would form the joint operation team.

Authorities may arrest criminals and those involved in murders during the anti-discrimination protests while recovering looted, unreturned, and illegal firearms, according to sources familiar with the development.

Earlier, police headquarters warned that legal action would be taken if stolen arms and ammunition were not returned by September 3.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has also suspended firearm licenses issued to civilians over the past 15 years, requiring these weapons to be submitted by September 3.

According to the police, 450 police stations were attacked during the mass uprising, with a significant number of arms and ammunition looted during that time.

As of September 1, police had recovered 3,880 firearms, approximately 286,353 bullets, 22,201 tear gas canisters, and 2,139 sound grenades.

However, a large quantity of looted arms and ammunition remains unrecovered, according to police headquarters sources.

Assistant Inspector-General of Police (Media and PR) Inamul Haque Sagar said, “We hope that everyone will follow the instructions issued by the Home Ministry and will deposit the looted or stolen arms within the deadline.”

Responding to a query, AIG Inamul mentioned that nearly every day, authorities are recovering a significant number of arms and bullets from civilians with arms licenses.

According to police headquarters data, there are 50,310 legal weapons in the country. Among them, 45,226 are personal weapons, with the remaining arms licensed to various financial and other institutions.

These include 4,683 pistols, 2,043 revolvers, 20,809 single-barreled guns, 10,719 double-barreled guns, 5,444 shotguns, 1,706 rifles, and 4,006 other firearms.

According to estimates, 10,215 of these weapons are with politicians.

Among them, Awami League activists possess 7,215 firearms, BNP activists 2,587, and 79 legal guns are registered to individuals involved in the politics of other parties.

A notification issued by the Home Ministry on August 25 suspended firearm licenses granted to civilians between January 6, 2009, and August 5, 2024.

The notification also instructed that all firearms and ammunition be deposited at the relevant police stations by September 3.

Saiful Islam, officer-in-charge of Hatirjheel police station, said they are receiving good responses from licensed arms holders. Some are coming to the police station daily to deposit their arms, but the final list will be revealed on the closing day, just before the drive begins.