80 Bangladeshi citizens stranded in South Korea returned

A total of 80 Bangladeshi citizens stranded in South Korea returned Dhaka this evening by a special flight of Asiana Airlines.

Meanwhile, 180 Bangladeshi workers most of which were imprisoned or in deportation camps, on various grounds, including not having valid documents, are scheduled to return to the country at the early hour of today, sources at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, said.

"The Bangladeshi workers are scheduled to land at the Dhaka airport at around 3:00am by a special flight of Flydubai," Avick Halder, a doctor at the health desk, HSIA, told The Daily Star.

Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen on May 6 said Dhaka is expecting to receive nearly 29,000 Bangladeshi nationals, mostly expatriate workers of Middle East countries in the next couple of weeks.

"Among the returnees, large numbers were in the prisons of different ME countries but got general amnesty due to Coronavirus pandemic," he had said.

Different Middle East countries including Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait UAE have already repatriated several thousand Bangladeshi workers in the last several weeks most of which were imprisoned or in deportation camps.

About Bangladeshi returnees from South Korea, Dr Avick said carrying the Bangladeshi nationals from Seoul, the special charted flight of Aisana Airlines-- OZ 7815 landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 6:10pm.

Of the returnees, one passenger was sent to institutional quarantine at city's Ashkona Hajj Camp as he had fever, said Dr Avick.

The rest of the Bangladeshis were allowed to go their respective homes as they had Covid-19 negative health certificate, said officials at the Dhaka airport.

"But all of them (Bangladeshi returnees) will have to stay in home quarantine for 14 days," said Dr Avick.