BANGLADESH NEWS
Robbers abducted 135 fishermen and hijacked three trawlers in sea along the coastal areas in Patuakhali and Bagerhat early Friday.
In Patuakhali, Shah Alam, an angler who survived the attack, said a gang of 20 masked robbers on two trawlers attacked their trawlers and abducted 100 fishermen, including the drivers of the trawlers.
The gang also looted hilsa fishes, fuel and cash from the trawlers while they were fishing in the Bay some 20 to 25 kilometres off the coast at Kuakata, he said.
The kidnapped fishermen include Jalal Mia, 55, Anwar Hossain, 32, Kalam Mia, 55 and Badol Mia, 55, reports our Patuakhali correspondent.
The gang identified themselves as the members of ‘Sagor Bahini’ and gave a mobile phone number - 01763566040 - to communicate with their leader, he said.
Ansar Uddin Mollah, president of Fish Traders Association, said the gang committed the robbery on over 100 trawlers and kidnapped over 100 fishermen when they were fishing in the Bay.
The gang kidnapped Faruq Majhi, 40, of Cox’s Bazar, Khorshed Majhi, 45, of Mohipur, Kuddus Majhi, 35, of Khepupara, Abdul Bareq, 35, and Moti Majhi, 30, and Harun Majhi, 45, of Noli Bazar, and Alamgir Hossain, 40, of Barguna, Ansar said.
The gang dividing into several groups attacked on fishing trawlers in the Bay, he added.
Lt Dipankar, staff officer of Coast Guard (South Zone) operation department, said they heard about the incident, adding they have already begun an operation to rescue the abducted fishermen.
Our Bagerhat correspondent reports: Robbers kidnapped 35 fishermen near Fairway Buoy on the Bay in Sharankhola upazila early Friday.
They also hijacked three trawlers and looted valuables, including hilsha fishes and fishing nets, from the trawlers and demanded Tk 12 lakh as ransom from the owners, said Sheikh Idris Ali, general secretary of Bagerhat Coastal Matsyajibi Samity.
The robbers also beat up five fishermen as they resisted, he added.
Idris Ali said the robbers swooped on three trawlers laden with hilsa fishes and took the fishermen into the deep forest of Sundarbans.
Over 200 fishermen were kidnapped by robbers demanding ransom from Sundarbans and coastal areas in the last three months.
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