Bodies of 4 peacekeepers reach Dhaka
UNB
The bodies of four Bangladeshi peacekeepers, who were killed on February 28 while on duty in the Mopti region of Mali, arrived at the Shahjalal International Airport yesterday afternoon, reports UNB. The four peacekeepers, Warrant Officer Abul Kalam Azad hailing from Pirojpur, Corporal Mohammad Akter Hossin Mymensingh and soldiers Mohammad Rayhan Ali from Pabna and Jamal Uddin from Chapainawabganj were killed and as many others, all members of Bangladesh Army, injured after their vehicle hit an improvised explosive device (IED) at Douentza in the line of duty.
A flight of Emirates Airlines along with the four bodies of peacekeepers landed the airport around 4:50 pm, sources at the airport said.
The bodies will be handed over to their families after the namaz-e-janaza of the deceased around 8:30 am at Choppers Den of Dhaka Cantonment on Friday, said an officer of Inter Service Public Relation (ISPR) preferring anonymity.
Soldier Jamal is the eldest son of Mesher Ali of Ghaissapara village under Chapainawabganjs Shibganj area. He joined the Mali peace corps in May last year. Son of Moslem Pramanik, soldier Raihan hailed from Samashanari village under Santhia upazila of Pabna. Raihan talked to his wife Sohana Khatun in Bangladesh over phone on Wednesday afternoon, hours before he fell in the line of duty.
Hailing from Nazirpur of Pirojpur, Abul Kalam was planning to retire after his return from the Mali mission. Earlier on March 7, a memorial ceremony of the deceased was held at the MINUSMA Operational Base in Bamako of Mali.
Following the attack on the peacekeepers, the UN mission is reinforcing its security presence in central Mali, which has seen a surge in violence by Islamist militants, in cooperation with the countrys army as well as regional and international forces.
The more than 11,000-strong mission in Mali has become the most dangerous in the world for UN peacekeepers, who are routinely attacked by militants. The threat of groups related to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group continues to spread through Mali.
In September, last year, a similar IED explosion killed three Bangladeshi peacekeepers at the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali.
Bangladesh is the worlds second-biggest contributor to UN peacekeeping operations with some 7,000 uniformed personnel deployed to missions around the world.
