Militancy: ‘56% come from general education background’

Only madrassa education cannot be blamed for militancy as 56 per cent of those involved in militancy are from general education background, according to a research of the police headquarters.

“Only madrassa education cannot be blamed for militancy as most of the militants in our custody are from general education background,” Additional Deputy Inspector General (Intelligence) of Anti-terrorism Unit of Police Md Moniruzzaman said this morning.

He was revealing the finding of a research at a seminar titled “Preventing Terrorism and Extremism Through Community Engagement” held at Brac University.

The research was done on 250 people who were arrested between 2015 and 2017 for their involvement in militancy, the additional DIG said.

Among the arrestees, 56 per cent are from general education background, 22 per cent from madrasa education background and the remaining 22 per cent are either uneducated or belong to English medium background, he said.

On the other hand, 80 per cent involved in religious extremism and terrorism were radicalised through the internet and various social media platforms, Moniruzzaman said, adding that the rest of the 20 per cent were influenced by acquaintances, the official said.

According to the research, it is evident that only educational background cannot be blamed for radicalisation rather everyone should take preventive measures to fight terrorism, he added.