168 Bangladeshis return from Libyan detention centre

A total of 168 irregular Bangladeshi migrants, many of whom allegedly endured abduction and torture after being trafficked to Libya, returned home on Tuesday from a detention centre in the North African country.

They arrived in Dhaka at 10:04am aboard a special Buraq Air flight after being repatriated from the Ganfuda Detention Centre in Benghazi of Libya, according to a Foreign Ministry press release.

The repatriation was jointly facilitated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh Embassy in Libya and Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment in cooperation with the Libyan government and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

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The returnees, who had been detained at the Ganfuda facility, had voluntarily expressed their willingness to return to Bangladesh.

According to information received by the authorities, most of them had entered Libya with the encouragement and assistance from human traffickers in an attempt to reach Europe illegally by sea.

Many of the returnees alleged that they had been abducted and subjected to torture at different times during their stay in Libya.

Officials from the Foreign Ministry, other ministries concerned and the IOM received the returnees at the airport.

The Foreign Ministry urged them to share their harrowing experiences with others to raise public awareness about the dangers of irregular migration and human trafficking.

The IOM provided each returnee with travel expenses, food items and primary healthcare assistance, while temporary accommodation was also arranged for those requiring it.

The Foreign Ministry, Bangladesh Embassy in Libya, Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry and IOM are working together to ensure the safe repatriation of Bangladeshi nationals still being held at different detention centres across Libya.