ROME: A Russian television channel (RT) said in their online report that Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) is buying surveillance equipment from an Italian company. The report said the Italian company is marketing the equipment after jointly manufacturing it with an Israeli company. According to the news report, used over the internet, the surveillance equipment can listen in on conversations on any computer or smartphone. The report was published on 9 July.
Asked about buying such technology, RAB legal and mass media wing director, commander Mufti Mahmud Khan, denied knowing anything regarding the matter. However, another RAB official on condition of anonymity told Prothom Alo that representatives of a foreign company met with RAB about purchasing such equipment. But nothing has been decided yet on whether to buy the equipment or not.
RT in their report said, the equipment to be bought from the company is made by an Israeli company named ‘Nice Systems.’ The company has a worldwide surveillance equipment business.. The report also said a representative from the company visited Dhaka to practically show the performance of the equipment. The report said ‘Nice Systems’ is a corporate partner of a mother company named ‘Hacking Team.’ ‘Nice Systems’ has close ties with the Israeli army and intelligence services. The CEO of Nice Systems, Barack Eilam, is a former official of the special intelligence unit, Signals Intelligence Core, of the Israeli Army. He is focused on expanding the company’s business worldwide. Hacking Team and Nice Systems are secretly selling such equipment worldwide, but have never acknowledged it.
