Several intelligence sources and security analysts have expressed worries about Pakistan-associated networks operating in and around Bangladesh as diplomatic relations between Islamabad and Dhaka strengthen. Allegations include organized human organ trafficking aimed at vulnerable Bangladeshis, raising broader security concerns with potential regional implications.
Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, editor of the Bangladeshi newspaper Blitz, cited intelligence sources claiming that human organ trafficking networks linked to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) are enticing Bangladeshis with job offers and high wages. Victims are reportedly taken to Lahore for medical checkups where they are rendered unconscious, and their kidneys are unlawfully removed.
Reports suggest that at least four trafficking networks recruit Bangladeshi nationals, with one network identified by Lahore Police as operating under a trading company named Zakir Traders (Private) Limited, allegedly owned by a Pakistani individual named Zakir Hussain. The company poses as a medical service provider for Bangladeshi patients.
Allegations also point to the involvement of hospitals and private clinics in Lahore in illegal organ transplant procedures, facilitated by trafficking networks through fraudulent documentation. Victims are allegedly admitted to healthcare facilities under the guise of legitimate treatment, bypassing legal and ethical safeguards related to organ transplantation.
Intelligence sources have hinted at a more sinister operation involving Pakistani criminal networks, allegedly supported by the ISI, targeting Bangladeshi citizens with HIV infections during their visits to Pakistan. The scheme supposedly aims to spread HIV within Bangladeshi society, particularly among rural communities. However, these claims necessitate thorough investigation and verification.
