About 143 Bangladeshi migrants, previously held in detention centers in Tripoli, Libya, have been successfully repatriated with the assistance of the UN, as reported by Anadolu Agency.
Chartered flights, organized by the IOM, transported the migrants, who arrived in Dhaka, on Tuesday. Another group of migrants is expected to arrive on 5 December, according to Bangladesh’s Foreign Ministry.
Over the past two years, around 466,666 Bangladeshi expatriates have permanently returned, according to data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS). However, official records indicate that more than one million Bangladeshis sought better employment opportunities abroad in 2023.
Shariful Hasan, the head of BRAC’s Migration, a Dhaka-based non-governmental organization specializing in migration issues, informed Anadolu that the organization played a crucial role in supporting 968 returnees from Libya.
He stated, “As we learned from the migrants returning from Libya, they undertook risky sea voyages to reach Europe for better living.”
“During the last two years, Bangladesh sent over 2 million migrants until October of this year,” Hasan added.
Earlier this week, the Libyan General Administration of Security Operations, announced the arrest of an individual wanted in connection with the kidnapping of foreign workers.
The administration reported that the suspect was apprehended, on an order from the Attorney General’s Office.
He was implicated in the abduction of Bangladeshi workers, forcing them to pay a ransom for their release.
The statement highlighted that legal measures have been taken against the accused, who has been subsequently referred to the competent authorities.
Last month, Police in Benghazi successfully dismantled a criminal gang, involved in the abduction of foreign labourers from Bangladesh.
The operation unfolded after investigators, at the Sidi Khalifa police precinct, received information about the detention of Bangladeshi workers, in a secret hideout.
The criminals demanded a ransom from the workers’ families, in exchange for their release.
According to a statement from the Benghazi Security Directorate, law enforcement officers swiftly moved to raid the hideout, leading to the apprehension of four gang members.
During the operation, over 40 Bangladeshi labourers were freed from their captors.
The four suspects confessed to luring the foreign workers, before holding them captive and demanding ransoms for their freedom. The perpetrators revealed the existence of a fifth accomplice.
The criminals have been handed over to the relevant authorities, and an ongoing investigation seeks to locate the remaining members.
In September, the Joint Security Room in Benghazi announced the successful freeing of a group of migrant workers, who were kidnapped by a Bangladeshi criminal gang.
The Room consists of members of the Libyan Interior Ministry of the Parliament-designated government, and the Libyan National Army (LNA). It did not disclose the location and timing of the raid on the gang. It released a video showing security members carrying out the operation in Benghazi.