Bangladesh Embassy in Bangkok has facilitated repatriation of a group of 68 Bangladeshi, Indian and Thai nationals from Thailand to Bangladesh by a special Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight.  The flight was arranged on a self-payment basis in line with Bangladesh Government’s commitment to extend all possible assistance and support to stranded Bangladeshis abroad.  Read: More people return to Dhaka from Thailand by special flight The Biman Bangladesh flight arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on Saturday, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday.  Ambassador of Bangladesh to Thailand Mohammed Abdul Hye thanked the Thai Government for extending their cooperation in this regard. Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic last year, the Embassy of Bangladesh in Bangkok has so far facilitated 16 special flights from Bangkok to Dhaka in coordination with the authorities concerned in Bangladesh and Thailand.  Read:78 Bangladeshis, foreign nationals arrive from Thailand Officials of the Embassy saw the passengers off at the Suvarnabhumi International Airport and extended necessary consular and other assistance for their departure formalities.

Considering the sufferings of the Bangladeshis still stranded in India, three more land ports will be reopened for their entry from India from May 16 in addition to Benapole, Burimari and Akhaura.  The new land ports are Darshana, Hili and Sonamasjid.  The decision was taken on Wednesday in an inter-ministerial meeting chaired by Foreign Secretary (Senior Secretary). Also Read: Border with India to remain shut for another 14 days As the facilities for quarantine under the district administration of Jessore have been exhausted, entry through the Benapole might be suspended for the time being.  The Bangladeshi travellers are requested to follow the guidance of Bangladesh missions in India in this regard.  All other restrictions and conditions imposed previously would remain in effect, according to the decision of the meeting.  High Commissioner of Bangladesh to India; Secretary, Security Services Division, Ministry of Home Affairs; Secretary (East), Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Additional Secretary, Cabinet Division; Additional Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and representatives of MoFA, MoHA, AFD, BGB, relevant District Administrations and Bangladesh missions in India attended the meeting. 

Fifteen among the 300 Bangladeshis who got stranded in India's Petrapole land port returned home  on Tuesday morning through Benapole checkpost.  They entered the country after receiving  NOC from the Deputy High Commission office of Bangladesh in Kolkata. They will be put on a14-day quarantine at a residential hotel in Benapole after completion of formalities.  Also read: Liquid oxygen import from India suspended at Benapole Ahsan Habib, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Benapole Immigration, said he have already received a letter to stop immigration for 14 days. The 15 Bangladeshis were allowed to return as they got special permission from Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata, he said. It was reported on Monday that around 300 Bangladeshis were stranded in India's Petrapole land port following Bangladesh government's decision to  close the border with India due to a huge surge in Covid-19 cases in the neighbouring country. Most of the Bangladeshis stranded there were either  patients or students. They said the border closure should have been announced a few days earlier.  Also read: Bangladesh-India transboundary river dying due to graft in ... However, import and export activities  are normal at Benapole port.   Matiar Rahman, director of the India-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce, said that disinfectants are not being sprayed on Indian trucks inside the port. The port authorities have not taken any  initiative to sanitize them.  Besides, Indian truck drivers are moving freely at Benapole market, putting local people at risk, he added. Abdul Jalil, acting director of Benapole Land Port, said there were no restrictions on trade activities  between the two countries and.  instructions have been given to keep all activities normal at the port in compliance with hygiene rules.

Dhaka has urged Kuala Lumpur to do the needful for bringing back the stranded Bangladeshi workers to their old and new places of work in Malaysia on humanitarian grounds. 

Bangladesh has sought urgent action from Qatar to help Bangladeshis return to the country and join work  highlighting the difficulties including financial distress being faced by the stranded Bangladeshis.

Bangladesh has sought South Korea's cooperation to ease the visa process so that the workers and students who came back to Bangladesh at the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic could return to their work and studies.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh has taken an initiative in coordination with Bangladesh Embassy in Washington, D.C and Bangladesh Consulates in New York and Los Angeles to repatriate stranded Bangladeshi citizens from the USA by the second special flight of Qatar Airways in the midst of COVID-19.   The special flight of Qatar Airways QR 3458 will depart from John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport in New York for Dhaka via Doha at 9 am on Saturday.   From Doha the flight QR3390 will land at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka at 4:45 pm on Sunday.   The flight will be operated by maintaining all health guidelines relating to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.   All passengers of the flight are requested to complete their check-in procedures at the departure terminal no. 8 of JFK four hours before the flight’s time for takeoff.    It is to be noted that the check-in counter at the airport will be closed one hour before the flight’s departure.   The passengers are also requested to directly contact Oryx Aviation Ltd. 

A special flight with 247 Bangladesh citizens, stranded in the USA amid coronavirus pandemic, will arrive here early Sunday.     The passengers include mostly Bangladeshi students studying in different colleges and universities in the USA, Bangladesh citizens who came to America on tourist and business visas and some government and non-government officials.   The flight, scheduled to depart for Bangladesh on Friday from Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD), will land at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 4am (local time) on Sunday, said the Bangladesh Embassy in Washington. 

A total of 114 Bangladesh citizens, mostly students, arrived here on Monday morning from London, the United Kingdom (UK).    They were stranded in the UK since suspension of international flights between Dhaka and London in the wake of coronavirus pandemic.   A Biman Bangladesh Airlines special chartered flight - BG 4041 - carrying the Bangladesh citizens departed London at 7:45 pm (London Time).   The flight arrived at Hazrat  Shahjalal International Airport at 9:40am with 114 passengers, Tahera Khandakar, deputy general manager (public relations) of Biman told  UNB.    Bangladesh High Commissioner to the UK Saida Muna Tasneem saw off the returning passengers at the Heathrow Airport.    The flight is scheduled to land at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 09:45 am today (Monday), according to Bangladesh High Commission in London.    Earlier at the request of Bangladesh High Commission in London, the government arranged the flight, being operated by the national flag carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines and chartered by Bangladesh Air Force Welfare Trust (BAFWT).    The High Commission facilitated the return of the Bangladeshis after forming a COVID-19 Emergency Repatriation Committee.   Initially, more than 200 stranded Bangladeshi citizens, including students booked their flight, but many of them had cancelled their booking at the very last moment citing personal reasons and in the fear of institutional quarantine in Bangladesh on their arrival.    However, the High Commission has already provided all the passengers with a health certificate based on their health assessment so that they would be directed to home quarantine only.    Similarly, the High Commission has assured all passengers travelling from Dhaka to London that they would be guided to home quarantine.   “We are grateful to Bangladesh Government, specially to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina; and for the initiative of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Bangladesh Air Force in particular for chartering this flight," said High Commissioner Tasneem.   From the High Commission, she said, they are humbly gratified that they could reunite the Bangladeshi citizens, in particular students, stranded in the UK with their families in Bangladesh before Eid-ul-Fitr.   “We also would like to thank particularly UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, UK Home Office, UK Border Agency, London Heathrow Airport Authorities and Biman Bangladesh Airlines for their tremendous support to ensure the safe return of the stranded Bangladeshis during this difficult time of unprecedented coronavirus pandemic," said the High Commissioner. 

A total of 157 Bangladeshi citizens, who were stranded in Australia amid an air travel ban because of the coronavirus outbreak, have departed Melbourne for Dhaka on a special Sri Lankan Airlines flight on Friday afternoon.