BGB brings back 29 fishermen captured by Myanmar’s Arakan Army

Of them, there are at least 14 Rohingya men belonging from refugee camps in Teknaf-Ukhiya

The Border Guard Bangladesh, or BGB, has secured the release of 29 fishermen who were captured by the "Arakan Army" on separate occasions while fishing in the Naf River in Cox’s Bazar’s Teknaf.

The fishermen were brought back on Thursday evening through a transit jetty in Teknaf Municipality, according to Lt Col Md Ashiqur Rahman, commander of the BGB Teknaf-2 Battalion.

The names of those released have not yet been disclosed.

However, there are at least 14 Rohingya men belonging from the refugee camps in Teknaf-Ukhiya among them.

Ashiqur said that due to the ongoing conflict in Myanmar, the situation in the country's Rakhine State is unstable. As such, most of the areas of Myanmar bordering Bangladesh are now under the control of the “Arakan Army” insurgents.

Due to the activities of the insurgent group in the Naf River, there have been several incidents of Bangladeshi fishermen being abducted.

These fishermen had been kept in custody by Arakan Army members for a long time.

Ashiqur said BGB officials had engaged in discussions with the insurgents to facilitate the fishermen’s release.

“After a long effort, we were able to bring back 29 fishermen on Thursday evening,” he said.

Earlier, a team from the BGB had departed for Maungdaw in wooden trawlers to retrieve the fishermen held hostage in Myanmar.

The BGB official said, “Several information about the returned fishermen are being collected which information will be passed on to the Teknaf police. Police will take measures to send them back to their relatives.”