175 irregular migrants return from Libya on special flight

A total of 175 irregular Bangladeshi migrants were brought back home from Libya today through a coordinated effort of the government and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

The returnees, who had been residing in Libya without legal status, arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka at 6:15am on a special flight of Buraq Air from Benghazi, according to a foreign ministry press release.

Most of the returnees had entered Libya through human traffickers who lured them with false promises of migrating to Europe by sea, it said.

Many of them had endured abduction, torture and exploitation while in Libya.

Officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment and the IOM received the returnees at the airport.

The officials urged them to share their painful experiences with others in order to raise awareness against the dangers of irregular migration.

Each of the returnees was provided with travel allowances, food items, basic healthcare services and temporary shelter support by the IOM.

The foreign ministry said it has been working in close coordination with the Bangladesh Embassy in Libya, the expatriates' welfare ministry and the IOM to ensure the safe repatriation of Bangladeshis held in detention centres in Libya.