114 Bangladeshis return from Libya

As many as 114 Bangladeshi nationals returned home from Libya today, under the International Organization for Migration's Voluntary Humanitarian Return Programme.

A special flight of Buraq Air -- carrying the returnees -- arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 8:15 am today, said Zia, additional superintendent (media) of the Airport Armed Police Battalion (APBn).

IOM also provided food and financial assistance of Tk 4,750 to each returnee at the airport.

These Bangladeshis went to Dubai, Oman and Malaysia on tourist visas last year. From there, they went to Libya by paying brokers Tk 11-15 lakh each.

They were detained by Libyan law enforcers in Tripoli. And some of them even served up to nine months in jail. Later, the United Nations migration agency facilitated their return to Bangladesh.

Since 2015, a total of 2,942 Bangladeshi migrants have returned from Libya through the programme, which is a part of the larger EU-IOM Joint Initiative for Migrant Protection and Reintegration.