41 Bangladeshis return from Thailand Wednesday

A batch of 41 Bangladesh nationals, trafficked into Thailand by sea, will arrive in Bangladesh on Wednesday evening. A flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines -- BG 089 -- carrying them will land at Hazrat Shahjalal (R) International Airport in Dhaka around 7:30pm, said an official. Among the returnees, 13 hail from Cox's Bazar district, six from Jhenidah, five each from Narsingdi and Sirajganj, four from Satkhira, three from Magura, two each from Jessore and Bandarban, and one from Faridpur district. The repatriation of the 41 detained Bangladesh nationals are being fully sponsored by the government of Bangladesh, the official said. He said the repatriation will be a result of a special measure and follow-up to Bangladesh's commitment made at the Bangkok meeting on May 29. The costs of their repatriation include airfare, transportation from Suan Plu Immigration Detention Centre in Bangkok to Suvarnabhumi Airport and other expenses. The Bangladesh Embassy in Bangkok with the active support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs of Bangladesh and Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand and Thai Immigration Bureau has so far repatriated 919 Bangladesh nationals trafficked to Thailand by suspected people smugglers since late 2013. The Embassy has also repatriated 80 Bangladeshis since the discovery of a mass grave along the Thailand-Malaysia border on May 1, 2015, according to a news agency.