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Another soldier was wounded when their patrol car hit an improvised explosive device, the ISPR said
Published : 04 Oct 2022, 07:51 PM
Three Bangladeshi peacekeepers have been killed and another injured in a roadside bomb blast in Central African Republic, according to the Inter Service Public Relation Directorate, or ISPR.
The peacekeeping troopers fell prey to an improvised explosive device while on patrol on Tuesday.
The dead were identified as Sainik Jashim Uddin, 31, from Brahmanbaria’s Katinga village, Sainik Jahangir Alam, 26, from Nilphamari’s Dakkhin Titpara village, and Sainik Sharif Hossain, from Sirajganj’s Barak Rua village.
Patrol Commander Major Ashraful Haque was injured in the blast.
A contingent of the Bangladesh Army, BANBAT-8, deployed in Central African Republic’s western sector, Bouar, has been engaged in peacekeeping operations across vast swathes of the region since November 2021.
Commander Ashraf led the patrol team from a temporary camp in Kui to Kaita when their vehicle tripped over the IED burrowed into the ground, according to the ISPR. The blast flung Sharif, Jahangir and Jashim more than four metres away, severely injuring them in the process.
They were immediately treated with first aid before authorities rescued them from the secluded area, covered with dense forests amid calamitous weather.
With assistance from the Central African Republic government, the soldiers were rushed to a hospital about 144 km away in Bouar for advanced treatment, it said.
Doctors at the hospital later declared the three peacekeepers dead. Major Ashraful is currently receiving treatment and is stable, according to the ISPR.
Authorities are working on bringing the bodies back to the country as soon as possible, it said.
The Central African Republic has been locked in a civil war since 2012 involving the government, rebels from the mainly Muslim Séléka coalition and the mainly Christian anti-Balaka movement.
The UN Security Council authorised deployment of peacekeeping operations in 2014.
As of May 2022, some 16,241 peacekeeping personnel, including 11,578 contingent troops, were deployed in the Central African Republic.
Bangladesh is the top troop contributor to UN peacekeeping missions, according to the UN.
