Post by : Meena Ariff

Several Bangladeshi workers who travelled to Russia in search of better livelihoods say they were deceived by recruiters and forced into fighting on the front lines of the Russia-Ukraine war.

Maksudur Rahman, a resident of Bangladesh, was persuaded by a labour agent to leave his hometown with the promise of a janitorial job in Russia. Instead, shortly after arriving in Moscow, he and other Bangladeshi workers were made to sign documents written in Russian, which later turned out to be military contracts.

Rahman said the group was taken to an army camp, where they were trained in drone operations, handling heavy weapons, medical evacuation, and basic combat skills. When he protested and said he had agreed only to civilian work, a Russian commander bluntly told him through a translation app that they had been “bought” by the agent.

According to Rahman, those who refused orders were threatened with long prison sentences, beaten, and intimidated. He managed to escape and return to Bangladesh after spending seven months under coercion. Families of other missing Bangladeshi men say their relatives shared similar stories before losing contact.

Documents reviewed by investigators, including visas, contracts, medical records, and photographs, support claims that these workers were forced to participate in military operations. The men say they were compelled to carry supplies, evacuate wounded soldiers, retrieve bodies, and move ahead of Russian troops during combat.

Another Bangladeshi worker, Mohan Miajee, initially travelled to Russia for an electrician’s job at a gas facility. Facing harsh conditions, he searched for new work and was contacted by a military recruiter who promised a non-combat role related to electronics or drones. Instead, he was sent to a military camp in eastern Ukraine.

Miajee said he was beaten, handcuffed, and tortured whenever he refused orders or made mistakes, often due to language barriers. He was held in a basement cell and assaulted repeatedly before eventually returning home.

Families of the affected men have lodged complaints with police in Bangladesh and travelled to Dhaka several times, demanding action against recruiting agents. Some wives say their husbands told them they were being threatened with detention, starvation, or execution if they refused to fight.

In one case, Ajgar Hussein, who believed he was heading to Russia for a laundry job, sent a final message to his wife asking her to pray for him after saying he had been forced into the war.

Officials from Russia and Bangladesh have not issued responses to these allegations. Meanwhile, similar complaints have emerged from families in other South Asian and African countries, raising concerns over the exploitation of foreign workers during the ongoing conflict.

#Global News