The government has decided to rename the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) as Special Intervention Force (SIF).
Home Affairs Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury announced the decision on Tuesday following a meeting of the law-and-order core committee at the Bangladesh Secretariat.
RAB, an elite law enforcement unit in Bangladesh, was formed for combating serious crimes, terrorism, and organised criminal activities in 2003.
Operating under the Ministry of Home Affairs, RAB is a composite force made up of personnel from the Police, Army, Navy, Air Force, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), and Ansar.
The force has played a crucial role 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 organisations over alleged extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.
