Bangladesh
Trafficking ring allegedly sent Bangladeshis into Russia’s war
Bangladesh’s Special Response Battalion says 30 people were recruited with promises of construction work in Russia, stripped of their documents and sent to the Ukraine front after brief training. Twenty are believed dead, while two suspected organisers have been arrested.
এই খবরটি আপাতত ইংরেজিতে পড়ুন
From 15 October 2026 — Daily Brief
Bangladesh’s Special Response Battalion says a trafficking network recruited 30 Bangladeshis for supposed construction jobs in Russia before forcing them into military service.
Investigators said the group travelled in May after paying about Tk10 lakh each. Their passports and phones were allegedly confiscated on arrival, and they were handed to the Russian military. After 21 days of training, the recruits were deployed to different sections of the Ukraine front.
At least 20 are believed to have died, including 17 reportedly killed by drone strikes on their first day of deployment. Six are thought to remain on the battlefield, two are receiving treatment in Moscow and two have returned to Bangladesh with injuries.
The battalion arrested two alleged organisers following a complaint filed by the father of a returned recruit. Officials said the inquiry had also identified suspected foreign links and was seeking other members of the network.
The case underlines the risk facing jobseekers who borrow heavily for overseas work and rely on unverified recruiters. The figures remain preliminary and authorities have not published a full list of victims or independent confirmation of every reported death.