At 5:27 pm this afternoon, an Emirates flight (No. 586) landed at Dhaka’s Shah Jala International Airport. Three well-dressed bearded men alighted from the aircraft and calmly, but curiously, walked to a waiting bus which they boarded with other passengers.
The bus dropped the passengers near the gate leading into a large enclosure for immigration and security clearance.
The passports of the three men, supposedly belonging to the Pakistan Army Medical Corps, were duly stamped before they were met by their hosts – Bangladeshi officials and Pakistani diplomats stationed in Dhaka – who exchanged pleasantries before taking them quickly out of the airport into waiting staff cars.
The three Pakistani officers, Brigadier General Nadeem Ahmed, Brigadier General Muhammad Talha and Brigadier General Saood Ahmed Rao, are in Dhaka at the invitation of the Bangladesh Army.
They were first taken to Dhaka’s Radisson Blu Hotel.
The Pakistani officers’ travel documents and other papers, accessed by Northeast News, reveal a curious point: while the passport of Brig Gen Nadeem Ahmed was issued on April 30, 2025, that of Brig Gen Nadeem Ahmed and Brig Gen Muhammad Talha were issued on May 29 and May 26, respectively.
These are fresh machine-readable passports with no stamps or other markings on the leaves.
And the validity of each of the three passports is for a year, suggesting that they were issued with a specific purpose.
Even more importantly, the three Pakistan Army officers are scheduled to visit Bangladesh Army’s 10th Infantry Division headquarters at Ramu near Cox’s Bazar.
“These three are definitely under cover. Otherwise, why should they be visiting Ramu cantonment?” asked a Bangladeshi retired Major General.
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Suffice it to say that since at least April this year, the Ramu cantonment has been turned into an ultra-sensitive military establishment.
It is said to be the main hub for the Bangladesh Army’s impending operations involving providing logistical and supply support to the Arakan Army.
Before their departure for Pakistan via Dubai on July 5, the Pakistani officers will also meet a host of senior Bangladesh Army officers, including those attached with the Directorate General of Medical Services, military’s Adjutant General’s office and other units.
