Tamim Chowdhury

Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury (25 July 1986 – 27 August 2016), known by his kunya Abū Ibrāhīm al-Hanīf, was a Bangladeshi-Canadian alleged to be the emir of the Islamic State (IS) in Bangladesh. He was the alleged mastermind of the July 2016 Dhaka attack at the Gulshan café, which resulted in 29 deaths. He was killed in a raid on an IS safehouse in Dhaka by Bangladeshi forces on 27 August 2016.[1]

History

He was born on 25 July 1986 in Sylhet, Bangladesh. Chowdhury was formerly a resident of Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

He attended J.L. Forster Secondary School in Windsor. He competed for the school in a variety of track and field activities in 2004. He graduated from the University of Windsor in Spring 2011, with an honours degree in chemistry.[2]

Amarnath Amarasingam, Post-Doctoral Fellow with the Resilience Research Centre at Dalhousie University, said of Chowdhury's time in Windsor, "There were a few [people] who knew him from the mosque and from the social circles" and "He was a shy, skinny kid."[3]

The Windsor Islamic Association (WIA) commented, "We can confirm that Tamim Chowdhury was from Windsor, though he was not a well-known individual in the community," WIA spokesperson Lina Chaker said.[4][5][6][7][8]

Islamic State

He may have travelled to Syria at some point in 2012–13. He returned to Bangladesh sometime afterwards.[9]

He was described as the "prime architect" and "one of the masterminds" of the July 2016 Dhaka attack.[10][11]

In April 2016, an interview with him was featured in the 14th edition of Dabiq, the official publication of the Islamic State. In the article, he was described as the "amīr of the Khilafah’s soldiers in Bengal"[9] and was quoted as saying, "Bengal is an important region for the Khilāfah and the global jihād due to its strategic geographic position. Bengal is located on the eastern side of India, whereas Wilāyat Khurāsān is located on its western side." "Thus, having a strong jihād base in Bengal will facilitate performing guerilla attacks inside India simultaneously from both sides and facilitate creating a condition of tawahhush (fear and chaos) in India along with the help of the existing local mujāhidīn there."[12]

Bounty

On 2 August 2016, it was reported that the Bangladeshi police had offered a reward of 200,000 Bangladeshi taka ($2,500) for information leading to his capture.[13]

Death

Three militants, including Chowdhury, were killed during a joint forces raid at a house in Narayanganj Sadar Upazila on 27 August 2016. Monirul Islam, chief of Dhaka Metropolitan Police counter-terrorism unit, confirmed his death in an announcement reported in the Bangladeshi newspaper.[14][15]

References
  1. "Tamim Chowdhury, the Dhaka café massacre mastermind, is killed in raid: Police". Bdnews24.com. 14 September 2013. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  2. Zelin, Aaron Y. (2 August 2016). "GUEST POST: Searching for the Shadowy Canadian Leader of ISIS in Bangladesh | JIHADOLOGY: A clearinghouse for jihādī primary source material, original analysis, and translation service". Jihadology.net. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  3. MIGDAL, ALEX (2 July 2016). "Bangladeshi terror group affiliated with IS reportedly led by Canadian". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  4. Sachgau, Oliver (10 June 2016). "Windsor man is reportedly leading Daesh in Bangladesh". The Star. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  5. Haines, Avery (5 July 2016). "U of T student detained in Bangladesh following Dhaka attack". 680news. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  6. Bell, Stewart (7 June 2016). "'He is from Windsor': Canadian identified as leader of ISIL affiliate in Bangladesh". National Post. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  7. Khandaker, Tamara (8 June 2016). "The Islamic State's Leader in Bangladesh Is Probably Canadian". Vice News. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  8. Ahsan, Zayadul (7 June 2016). "Militants grow in silence". The Daily Star. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  9. "Isis attack 'mastermind' from Canada killed in police raid". The Independent. 27 August 2016. Retrieved 2016-11-14.
  10. "Local 'IS chief' Tamim Chowdhury prime architect of Dhaka cafe attack, say police". The Indian Express. 30 July 2016. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  11. Samhati Bhattacharjya (31 July 2016). "Dhaka cafe attack mastermind identified as Bangladeshi-Canadian Tamim Chowdhury". Ibtimes.sg. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  12. Bhattacharyya, Anirudh (3 July 2016). "Islamic State's Bangladesh chief believed to be from Canada". Hindustan Times. Toronto. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  13. Mohammad Jamil Khan (2 August 2016). "Tk40 lakh bounty on top 2 militants, details released". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
  14. "Terror kingpin killed". The Daily Star. 27 August 2016. Retrieved 2016-08-28.
  15. Dearden, Lizzie (27 August 2016). "Isis attack 'mastermind' from Canada killed in police raid". The Independent. Retrieved 2016-08-28.
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