22 MAY (V7N) - The Bangladesh Coast Guard successfully rescued 21 hostage fishermen and seized a cache of arms and ammunition following a fierce gun battle with pirate groups deep within the Sundarbans mangrove forest. The coordinated operations targeted the hideouts of two notorious criminal gangs, the "Bara Jahangir Bahini" and the "Dayal Bahini," who had recently abducted the fishermen for ransom while they were harvesting fish and crabs.
Acting on precise intelligence, Coast Guard personnel first raided a pirate camp located along the Bara Dudhmukh Canal near the Shibsa River at approximately 5:00 PM on Thursday. Sensing the approach of law enforcement, members of the Jahangir Bahini opened fire on the raid team, prompting the Coast Guard to retaliate in self-defense. Outgunned, the bandits retreated into the dense forest terrain, leaving behind 11 captive fishermen who were safely secured along with a single-barrel gun and six rounds of ammunition.
In a separate, pre-dawn operation at 4:00 AM on the same day, Coast Guard units executed a raid targeting the Dayal Bahini in the Tota and Keoratola canals under the Andharmanik forest range. The militants abandoned their stronghold and fled into the wilderness ahead of the tactical teams, allowing authorities to safely rescue 10 additional hostage fishermen from the site.
Coast Guard Media Officer (Dhaka) Lieutenant Commander Sabbir Alam Sujan confirmed that legal proceedings regarding the seized weaponry are underway and authorities have initiated the formal process to safely reunite all 21 rescued fishermen with their families. He reaffirmed that aggressive anti-piracy operations will continue until the Sundarbans is entirely secured for local tradesmen.
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