Help! Trapped in Yemen, 2 Bangladeshis appeal

Two Bangladesh nationals, who have been trapped in two hotels in Yemen due to allied strikes on Houthi rebels, have appealed for immediate rescue.

Trapped Golam Mostafa, 60, a civil engineer, emailed The Daily Star from Shahran Hotel in Sana’a seeking help. His passport No. is AF 3896977.

“I am a Bangladeshi citizen, Civil Engineer in profession. Due to war in Yemen I am in danger. I request Government of Bangladesh to rescue me from here,” he wrote in the email.

He identified the other Bangladeshi as Mohammad Sirajul Haque, whose passport No. is AC2545774.

While talking to The Daily Star, Mizanur Rahman, an official at Bangladesh embassy in Kuwait, said they will extend necessary assistance to bring back Golam Mostafa.

 “Our ambassador Maj Gen Mohammad Ashab Uddin directly talked to Mostafa and offered the required help for his safety,” Mizanur said.

He, however, said they don’t have information about the news of the other Bangladeshis trapped in Yemen.

Meanwhile, a relative of Mostafa said the engineer went to Yemen on March 10 for his consultancy job.

Contacted, Golam Mostafa’s wife Tahmina Sultana told The Daily Star over phone,“We urge the government to take initiatives to bring back my husband.  If necessary, it can also seek UN assistant in this regard.”

As there is no Bangladesh embassy in Yemen, the government can seek help from nearby countries where it has diplomatic offices, Tahmina said adding that she and her two sons are now passing miserable life.

Golam Mostafa left for the war-torn Middle East country with a job under a World Bank project (RMF Road Maintenance), the family mentioned.

The engineer, who stays at Eid city, some kilometres away from Sana, has been working there as a team leader under the project there, Tahmina said.

He received his engineering degree from Buet.

“He wanted to return Bangladesh on Friday night as the situation in Yemen is worsening. And that’s why he went to Sana to take a flight from the local airport. But he did not come out of the hotel on security grounds.”

The Saudi-led coalition has been carrying out military action in Yemen for the last few days, to combat Shia Houthi rebels.