39 Bangladeshis deported from US for illegal stay

Staff Reporter :

The United States has deported 39 Bangladeshi nationals on charges of illegal stay.
They arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport early Saturday morning on a special military aircraft (C-17), according to immigration police sources.

The deportees, including one woman, landed at 6:45 am after an exhausting 60-hour journey. Witnesses at the airport described scenes of distress and silence among the returnees-some appearing stunned, others emotionally drained.

Several of them alleged inhumane treatment during the flight, claiming they were kept in handcuffs throughout the journey.

“We are not criminals. We only sought asylum. Yet, we were treated like convicts,” said one of the deportees.

BRAC, a leading NGO, assisted with transportation, while the Expatriate Welfare Desk provided food upon their arrival.

Shariful Hasan, Associate Director of BRAC’s Migration Program and Youth Platform, stated that many of these individuals had sold their homes and taken heavy loans-spending as much as Tk 3 to 4 million-to travel through Mexico or South American countries in hopes of entering the US. However, their asylum applications were rejected by US courts and immigration authorities.

Earlier, a source from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had indicated that 61 Bangladeshis were expected to be repatriated on Saturday. However, only 39 arrived in this batch.
So far, 118 Bangladeshi nationals have been deported in multiple phases-this latest group bringing the total to 157. Following Donald Trump’s re-election as US President, the administration has adopted a stricter stance on illegal immigration.
He has been continuing the deportation of undocumented immigrants to their home countries as part of his deportation strategy. However, such measures have also created reactions there.