Bangladeshi forces close in on militant hideout in Dhaka

Dhaka, Sep 5 (IANS) Bangladesh's elite force Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) early on Tuesday cordoned off a building here in the capital, where suspected militants were holed up, a media report said.

The RAB has evacuated residents from the building in Mirpur's Mazar Road, bdnews24 reported. It has been making calls asking the suspect to surrender, RAB's spokesperson Mufti Mahmud Khan said.

According to a Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) officer the six-storeyed house at Darussalam was cordoned off at midnight following a tip-off.

The man described as a 'dangerous militant' was holed up inside along with his family. The numbers, however, are not confirmed, bdnews24 said.

"We spoke on the phone with one suspect inside. We are continuing our communication. We have also successfully moved all residents to safety," said Khan.

The residents have been evacuated to a school located near the building.

Several bombs, including some Molotov cocktails, were hurled towards the RAB from inside around 1 a.m. but none has been injured in the explosions, he said.

The raid in the militant hideout is still underway.

Security has been tightened in Bangladesh after militants attacked a Spanish cafe in Dhaka's Gulshan on July 1, 2016, which left 22 people, mostly foreigners, dead.