Bangladesh on Tuesday repatriated 168 nationals detained at a centre in Benghazi, Libya, as part of ongoing efforts to bring home Bangladeshis stranded or held in the North African country.
The returnees, who had been held at the Ganfuda Detention Centre, arrived in Dhaka at 10:04 am on a Buraq Air flight (UZ-222), according to a foreign ministry press release.
The repatriation was facilitated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Bangladesh Embassy in Libya and the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment with support from the Libyan government and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
Most of the returnees had reportedly entered Libya irregularly with the assistance and encouragement of human traffickers in an attempt to reach Europe by sea, said the release.
Many of them alleged that they had suffered abduction and torture at different times during their stay in Libya, it added.
Officials from the foreign ministry, other relevant ministries and the IOM received the returnees at the airport.
The foreign ministry urged them to share their distressing experiences with others in order to raise public awareness about the dangers of irregular migration and human trafficking.
The IOM provided each returnee with travel expenses, food assistance and primary healthcare, while temporary accommodation was also arranged where necessary.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh Embassy in Libya, Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment and the IOM are continuing coordinated efforts to safely repatriate Bangladeshi nationals detained at different centres in Libya.
Source: https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/national/168-more-nationals-repatriated-from-libya
