Dhaka: The government has decided to rename the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) as the Special Intervention Force (SIF). Home Affairs Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury announced the decision following a meeting of the law-and-order core committee at the Bangladesh Secretariat.
According to United News of Bangladesh, RAB is an elite law enforcement unit in Bangladesh, formed in 2003 to combat serious crimes, terrorism, and organized criminal activities. The unit operates under the Ministry of Home Affairs and is a composite force comprising personnel from the Police, Army, Navy, Air Force, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), and Ansar.
The force has been instrumental in counter-terrorism operations, anti-drug campaigns, and high-profile criminal investigations across the country. RAB was established on July 12, 2003, under the Armed Police Battalion (Amendment) Act, 2003, which amended the Armed Forces Battalion Ordinance of 1979.
Since its inception, RAB has faced criticism from human rights organizations over allegations of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.