In a stunning development that has rattled the nation’s power structure, the Bangladesh Army on Saturday confirmed detaining 15 of its officers following arrest warrants issued by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) against 30 individuals accused of involvement in enforced disappearances and crimes against humanity during the Awami League regime.

The announcement came amid intense speculation about possible unrest within the armed forces following the tribunal’s sweeping order implicating several high-ranking officials, including deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her former security adviser Maj Gen (retd) Tarique Ahmed Siddique, and multiple former chiefs of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI).

At a press briefing inside Dhaka Cantonment, Adjutant General Maj Gen Md Hakimuzzaman confirmed that 14 serving officers and one on post-retirement leave (LPR) had been taken into custody, while one officer — Maj Gen Kabir Ahmed — did not respond to notice and has since gone missing. “The Bangladesh Army also wants a proper trial of crimes against humanity, including disappearances and murders. We want justice and remain uncompromising on fairness and accountability,” he told reporters.

Hakimuzzaman said the Army had yet to receive official copies of the charge sheets but acted based on information available through the media and social platforms. “Once the charge sheet is received, we will review the allegations and seek opinions from the authorities concerned to determine how the trial process will proceed,” he said.

The ICT on Wednesday issued arrest warrants after accepting charges in two separate cases involving the abduction, disappearance, and torture of opposition activists. Seventeen of the accused are linked to torture operations at the Rapid Action Battalion’s Task Force Interrogation (TFI) Cell, while thirteen others are charged over abuses inside the DGFI-run Joint Interrogation Cell (JIC).

Hakimuzzaman said that of the 30 accused, 25 are current or former Army officers. “After the chargesheets were filed on October 8, sixteen personnel in service or on LPR were instructed to report to Army Headquarters. Except for Maj Gen Kabir Ahmed, all complied and were taken into custody. They have been separated from their families,” he said.

Maj Gen Kabir, a former DGFI (CTIB) director, reportedly left home on the morning of October 9 and has been untraceable since. “We are investigating his case,” the Adjutant General added.

The detentions follow explosive findings by the Justice Moinul Islam Chowdhury Commission, which was formed last year to probe enforced disappearances under the Awami League government. The commission’s first interim report, submitted in December, cited evidence linking Hasina and her defence adviser Tarique Siddique to abduction orders executed through clandestine detention sites known as Ayna Ghor (“House of Mirrors”).

Its second report, submitted in June, detailed the roles of police, RAB, DB, CTC, and intelligence agencies — including DGFI, NSI, and BGB — in the systematic disappearances of opposition activists.

The ICT’s case lists Hasina as the key suspect, alongside her top security and intelligence officials. Among those named are former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, ex-IGP Benazir Ahmed, former RAB chiefs M Khurshid Hossain and Md Harun-ar-Rashid, and five ex-DGFI directors general.

According to investigators, the TFI Cell and JIC functioned as centres for torture and secret interrogation, where victims were kept incommunicado for weeks or months. The commission’s findings align with testimonies from families who accused state agencies of operating extrajudicial “black sites.”

Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus earlier this year visited three of these notorious detention facilities, once run by DGFI and RAB. Following the visits, the interim government approved in principle the Enforced Disappearance Prevention and Redress Ordinance 2025, which introduces the death penalty for enforced disappearance and criminalises the operation of secret detention centres.

As the Army moves to distance itself from the alleged abuses of the past regime, officials insist the institution is committed to accountability. “If evidence of involvement in disappearances is found, the Bangladesh Army will take action,” Col Md Shafiqul Islam of the Directorate of Military Operations said earlier.

Saturday’s unprecedented detentions mark a watershed moment for Bangladesh’s security establishment — one that could redefine civil-military relations in a post-Hasina era already fraught with uncertainty and suspicion.