At least 11 Bangladeshi migrants are feared dead in the Mediterranean after a boat carrying them from Libya to Greece ran out of food and water, while six youths from Sunamganj’s Shantiganj upazila remain missing.
The families of the six youths are desperate for information about their fate but have largely remained silent, fearing that speaking publicly about the trafficking network could put their sons at further risk or jeopardise efforts to locate them.
The missing youths are Hridoy Pal of Shatrumerdan village in Paschim Pagla Union; Enamul Khan, Ripon Mia and Mamun Khan of Chikarkandi village in Purba Pagla Union; Md Talha of Ransi village; and Sagar Pal of Sichni village in Daragapasha Union.
Hridoy’s father, Rontu Pal, said he last spoke to his son on 31 July. Hridoy told him he was preparing to leave Libya for Greece within a day or two.
Rontu said Hridoy had been sent from Dhaka to India through a trafficking network after his family agreed to pay Tk13 lakh to Libya-based trafficker Omar Ali and Kaddus Ali of Dungaria village in Shantiganj.
He was subsequently taken from India to Sri Lanka and then to the United Arab Emirates before being sent to Libya, Rontu said. Hridoy later went missing while attempting to cross the Mediterranean to Greece.
Rontu said a team from Shantiganj Police Station had visited his home to gather information about the incident.
An uncle of another missing youth, Mamun, said his nephew left Libya for Greece by sea on 3 August. “We spoke to him over the phone that day. Since then, there has been no trace of Mamun,” he said.
Meanwhile, four other youths from Shantiganj who survived the journey are receiving treatment at a hospital in Egypt.
They are Badruddin Ahmed Kamran of Sichni village in Daragapasha Union, Alim Uddin of Burumpur village in the same union, and Abu Said and Abdul Karim of Patharia Union.
Their families said their conditions were improving. They, too, have been reluctant to discuss the traffickers, fearing for the safety of their relatives who remain under treatment.
Abdul Karim, who is being treated in Egypt, described the ordeal in a video message.
“We left Libya for Greece with 42 people. After reaching close to Greece, the engine of our boat broke down, leaving us unable to move forward. At that time, neither the traffickers’ associates nor any other organisation came forward to rescue us,” he said.
He said the passengers eventually ran out of food and water. “Nine Bangladeshis died before our eyes due to the lack of food and water. We had to throw their bodies into the sea. Later, two more people died,” he said.
Abdul Karim said prolonged exposure to seawater had left some survivors with serious physical problems.
He said the survivors were now receiving treatment at Marsa Matrouh Hospital, where doctors were providing medical care and arranging food. “Save us. We want to return home,” he appealed.
Shantiganj police station Officer-in-Charge Md Oliullah said no affected family had formally approached police over the incident. “We are trying to collect information on our own,” he said.
