GALIB'S PEOPLE REACH OUT TO EMBASSY TO PROCLAIM

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 005649

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/21/2015
TAGS: KISL PTER PGOV BG BG
SUBJECT: GALIB'S PEOPLE REACH OUT TO EMBASSY TO PROCLAIM
HIS INNOCENCE

Classified By: A/DCM D.C. McCullough, reasons para 1.5 b, d.


1. (C) Summary. Two senior figures in Prof. Galib's Ahle
Hadith group assured us that perceptions that their leader
supports violence and terrorism are false and the work of
Jamaat Islami and the leftist media. They requested regular
Embassy contact and invited us to visit their headquarters
and madrassas. End Summary.

2.(C) On November 18, RLA and FSN Political Specialist met
for more than two hours with Baharul Islam, Executive
Committee member of Ahle Hadith Andolon Bangladesh (AHAB),
and Sakhawat Hossain, the editor of the AHAB magazine "At
Tahriq." AHAB is an Islamic fundamentalist organization with
international connections that is led by Dr. Muhammad
Asadullah Al Galib, a Rajshahi University professor of Arabic
who has been under arrest since February on charges that he
aided and abetted terrorism by inciting his followers to
violence against two Bangladeshi NGO's. The northwestern
district of Rajshahi borders India and is the home base of
self-proclaimed Islamist warriors Bangla Bhai, who heads
Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB),and Abdur Rahman,
operational commander of the Jamaatul Mujahidin Bangladesh
(JMB). The BDG banned both groups in February, and JMB has
taken responsibility for an escalating campaign of violence
and threats against primarily judges that began with the
August 17 nationwide bomb blasts. According to DGFI, NSI,
and other observers, Galib is the spiritual adviser of Bangla
Bhai, Abdur Rahman, and their largely Ahle Hadithi followers.


3. (C) According to Baharul, who did most of the talking, Al
Hadith seeks to preach true Islam and "correct" the impurity
in the traditional Islam practiced in Bangladesh. The sect
believes that Allah's word can be found directly in the Koran
and the Hadith, and that imams are not needed to interpret
the text. Baharul stated that Ahle Hadith has 30 million
followers in Bangladesh who are attracted to its message of
equality and of subservient only to Allah. (Note: Other
estimates put Ahle Hadith adherents at a small fraction of
that figure, sometimes as few as one million. Baharul stated
his estimate was based on unspecified adjustments to a 1989
Ahle Hadith-conducted census.)


4. (C) Baharul said that Ahle Hadith is a religious group
with no interest in politics. However, because of their large
following and liberal interpretation of "Jihad" or holy war,
which does not mean violence, militant Islamic groups have
targeted them for character assassination. In terms of
religious philosophy, AHAB is closest to those groups
gathered under the banner of Islami Oikya Jote, a member the
ruling coalition but without Cabinet representation. Baharul
claimed that another BNP coalition member, Jamaat Islami
(JI),has mislead the BDG on Ahle Hadith's activities because
AHAB's large membership and doctrinal "purity" are a threat
to JI's authority. JI, he said, also suffers from the stigma
of being "a collaborator" with the Pakistanis in the 1971
Independence War, and that its reputation for opportunism was
further enhanced by its prior alignment with the Awami League
(AL). While AHAB supported BNP in the last election, it
might support the AL in 2007 because, Baharul claimed,
neither AHAB nor its followers were harassed or imprisoned by
the AL government as has happened under BNP.


5. (C) AHAB does not support the activities of violent
extremist groups like JMB or JMJB, Baharul insisted. When
asked why JMB threatens to bomb government offices if AHAB
leader Galib and some of his fellow AHAB detainees are not
released, Baharul blamed a leftist secular press for
publishing false reports to tarnish Galib. He asserted that
Galib does not believe that "jihad" justifies violence but
that it is a spiritual fight. Galib met Abdur Rahman one
time but he does not believe in the violent conduct of Bangla
Bhai or JMB. Baharul recounted a horrendous death at the
hand of Bangla Bhai's followers. Furthermore, he stated, two
disgruntled former members of AHAB are trying to tarnish
AHAB's image by portraying it as an extremist group. One is
the group's former treasurer, Rezal Karim, who was expelled
for embezzlement. The other is Shafiqual Islam, Assistant
Registrar at Rajshahi University, who was sacked as Director
of AHAB's Computer Center. Shafiqual is a former journalist
who has used those connections to discredit AHAB and
especially Galib, Baharul said.


6. (C) RLA inquired why AHAB does not combat these
allegations of terrorist involvement more strenuously.
Baharul responded that they have tried without success with
the press and are now trying to reach out to the
international community, which is why he wanted to meet with
the U.S. Embassy. (Note: This meeting stemmed from a request
from RLA to AHAB for court documents on the various cases
pending against Galib. Five out of 11 cases have been
discharged by either judges or the Ministry of Home Affairs
for lack of evidence, and RLA wanted the documents to assess
the judicial reasoning and determine what gaps, if any, may
exist in current laws addressing terrorist conduct. The two
men did not bring the documents but said they would get them
to RLA.)


7. (C) AHAB is led by a 13-member executive committee,
Baharul explained. Currently only seven are active because of
death, illness or imprisonment (i.e., Galib and two others).
After this, there is a 240-member consultative committee and
four levels of committees starting with units in 42 of
Bangladesh's 65 districts and going down to the village
level. AHAB operates five madrassas and orphanages, mostly
in the northwest, and a medical clinic in Kushtia. The only
time Baharul was hesitant in his responses was when he was
asked about AHAB's funding. He said money came from
individuals in Saudi Arabia but that AHAB was not influenced
by that country's Wahabi teachings. He said they were rather
"salafis" meaning followers of the Koran and authentic
Hadith. He added that a "few NGOs" also contribute,
including previously the Kuwait-based Islamic Heritage
Revival Foundation. (Note: The BDG has frozen IHRF's local
accounts because of its contributions to AHAB.)


8. (SBU) Baharul said AHAB would welcome American English
teachers at its madrassas for males and females. Women, he
stated, should be able to work because they can contribute to
a family's well being. He invited Embassy officers to visit
AHAB offices and madrassas in Kushtia and Rajshahi.


9. (C) Comment: The cordial meeting was conducted largely in
Bangla. We take with an enormous grain of salt most of
Baharul's statements, especially on Galib's alleged aversion
to violence and AHAB's membership size. However, the
animosity between Ahle Hadithis and JI is well known, which
was a major reason given last February for the BDG's
willingness to crack down on Galib, JMJB, and JMB. Still, it
is interesting that Galib's group is reaching out to us,
which might be a sign of desperation. We are looking to take
advantage of AHAB's invitation to visit their facilities in
December in combination with an attempt to meet with Galib's
colleagues at RU's Arabic Studies Department and other area
Islamists.
CHAMMAS