Kept as ‘human shields’ in Ukraine camps, say stranded Bangladeshis

Zhuravychi is a border city in Ukraine. It is just 130km away from the border shared by Ukraine and Belarus. The Polish border is also close to the city. In a former detention centre turned camp, about 120 human beings -- including women and children from different nations -- have been stranded. Among them, five are Bangladeshi.

Thanks to the ongoing conflict, many inhabitants of Ukraine has been forced to relocate to neighbouring countries. However, these 120 people cannot even get out of the camp -- going to a safer location seems like a far cry. They complain that they are being held there merely to be used as "human shields", as and when that particular need arises.

The Daily Star had a chat with Riyad Malik, who has been stranded in the camp along with four fellow Bangladeshis. He mentioned, although the detention centre had all kinds of facilities before, since the conflict intensified, those facilities started becoming scarce. They are currently enduring lack of adequate food, water, electricity and all other necessities.

"We have been tortured, and they took away our phones. I somehow managed to hide this phone, which came as a blessing as I'm being able to talk to you. They took away our phones in order to stop us from contacting the media. They imprisoned us and kept us here as hostages. We are being used as human shields. They don't even give us enough food to eat," lamented Malik.

He claimed that the camp is operated under European Union.

"Many members of the Ukrainian military force have gathered around this camp. The number would be around five thousand. If Russia decides to bomb or send missiles around this area, not a single soul will survive. In such circumstances, Ukraine will announce that Russians have killed civilians. This is the fate that has befallen us, and that's how we have become human shields," adds Malik.

They can hear the sounds of constant bombing and firing from within the confines of the camp. Till now, no one got injured, but it is as if they are merely counting their remaining days and the end may come anytime. 

Russian has been repeatedly saying that civilians are not their targets. However, if the Russian army attacks the surrounding Ukrainian military forces, these 120 "human shields" may all fall.

Bangladeshis end up using different routes in order to reach Europe. Russia is one such favoured path. Many individuals first enter Ukraine. Then they go through Russia to go to other European countries. In 2018, Malik left Bangladesh and used this particular route to reach the European soil.

Riyad Malik contacted the Bangladesh mission in Poland with the hope of getting rescued. However, they listened to his plea, and replied "alright". But, he complained, they are yet to receive any updates regarding any rescue attempts being taken by the embassy.

Malik said, "The Bangladesh government needs to intervene in order to rescue us from here. If the government speaks with the Russian authorities, then they will be able to rescue us in the same way the stranded sailors have been rescued."

"I don't think the embassy can do much in this situation," added Malik.

In a frightened voice, Malik continued, "The whole of Kyiv and Kharkiv have been burnt to ashes. So many bombs exploded! A Bangladeshi ship came under fire and one of our own got killed."

Approximately, 60 people, including two Bangladeshi nationals, are stranded in another detention camp in Mykolaiv.

These two individuals departed Bangladesh in 2020 with hopes of reaching the deeper regions of Europe through Russian lands. The court previously ordered their release, but allegedly, they are still forcibly detained in this camp, which is 900km away from the Polish border.

One of the two Bangladeshi camp dwellers, who requested not to be named, described the ordeal, "Yesterday, Russians took over this city. Russian bombs destroyed the local power generation plant and we are out of electricity now. Despite the biting cold, the heating system is dysfunctional. The water supply has also stopped. I can't describe the miseries of coping in an extremely cold country without a proper heating system. They imprisoned us with the sole purpose of using us as human shields."

"Russia is not killing civilians. Also, when Ukrainians soldiers are surrendering, they are not being harmed," added the Bangladeshi detainee.

Jahirul Islam is the other detained Bangladeshi citizen. Originally hailing from Noakhali, Islam told The Daily Star, "Although the court ordered our release, the authorities are not abiding by it. We could have gone to a safe location if they released us. It's a warzone here; even a few moments ago some Russian tanks rolled by the camp. Fighter jets are circling the sky above constantly. Yesterday, we had to take shelter in the bunker throughout the day."

While holding on to dear life in the Zhuravychi camp, Riyad Malik pleaded, "From Zhuravychi, cars and buses are taking people to the border areas for free. If the Bangladesh government takes some steps, our lives can be saved."

(Translated by Ishtiaque Khan)