Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Saturday said the 28 crew members of Bangladeshi vessel ‘Banglar Samriddhi’, which came under a missile attack at a Ukrainian port on Wednesday, have safely reached Romania from war-torn Ukraine.
Sharing the updates while talking to reporters at a programme at the Jatiya Press Club, he also said they will soon return home.
Bangladesh Merchant Marine Officers’ Association (BMMOA) on Saturday night said the Bangladeshi seafarers were still en route to the neighbouring country.
“But, due to the damaged bridges on the way and heavy traffic congestion, they may need to be transferred to another safe house or bunker,” it said in a message sent to the media at 9:13pm.
They will resume their journey at a suitable and safe time, it added.
Earlier, its BMMOA General Secretary Shawkat Hossain said the body of third engineer Md Hadisur Rahman, who was killed in the missile attack on the ship, has been left at a hospital in Ukraine.
Regarding the video posted by five Bangladeshis, the foreign minister said the government is scrutinising their statements to know the facts and their position.
He said Bangladesh wants peace and stability in the world. Momen said Bangladesh wants to see that the issue is resolved peacefully through discussion.
Earlier on Friday, Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen said efforts were underway to bring the Bangladeshi sailors to Romania from Ukraine.
Talking to reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he also said around 600 Bangladeshis are now in Poland.
The stranded crew members had been taken to a safe place after their evacuation from the damaged ship on Thursday.
They disembarked from the ship around 7:30pm (Bangladesh time) on Thursday after the ship was declared abandoned by its master.
‘Banglar Samriddhi’, a Bangladesh flagged vessel had remained stuck at the Olvia port of war-torn Ukraine with 29 sailors including two women on board since Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24th.
The ship came under a missile attack and one of its sailors died on the spot on Wednesday. The victim Hadisur Rahman was the third engineer of the ship and was hailing from Hosnabaad village of Betagi upazila under Barguna district. However, all other crew members survived the attack unhurt.
