Bangladesh rescues 57 Rohingya and local trafficking hostages

DHAKA, Bangladesh (MNTV) — Bangladeshi security forces rescued 57 people, including Rohingya refugees, from an armed human trafficking gang in the southeastern district of Cox’s Bazar on Thursday during a gunfight that left an army soldier dead.

The operation took place in the remote Rangikhali hills of Teknaf, between Rohingya refugee camps 24 and 26, in a region sheltering hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who fled persecution and military violence in neighboring Burma.

According to a statement issued by Bangladesh’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), intelligence reports indicated that a gang of 15 to 16 armed traffickers was holding approximately 120 Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi nationals hostage in the hills.

Acting on the intelligence, a joint team comprising personnel from the Bangladesh Army’s 10th Infantry Division, Border Guard Bangladesh and local police launched a rescue operation around 5 p.m.

The traffickers opened fire after detecting the security forces’ presence, triggering an exchange of gunfire, the military said.

During the confrontation, 27-year-old army soldier Md. Titas Sheikh was shot in his left shoulder and suffered severe blood loss.

He was initially taken to a nearby hospital for emergency treatment before being transferred to the Combined Military Hospital in Ramu, where doctors pronounced him dead.

Despite the armed resistance, security personnel rescued 57 hostages and detained five suspected members of the trafficking network.

Authorities also recovered a pistol, a locally manufactured firearm and four rounds of ammunition from the operation.

Local sources said the trafficking network intended to transport the captives to Malaysia by sea, a dangerous route frequently used by Rohingya refugees seeking to escape deteriorating living conditions in Bangladesh’s overcrowded refugee camps.

The military statement did not specify how many of those rescued were Rohingya refugees or provide details about the remaining hostages believed to have been held by the gang.

The Bangladesh Army expressed condolences to Sheikh’s family and paid tribute to his service.

Cox’s Bazar hosts more than one million Rohingya Muslims who fled successive waves of persecution in Burma, particularly the 2017 genocide, which forced hundreds of thousands to seek refuge across the border.

The refugees face severe restrictions on movement, limited employment opportunities and growing humanitarian challenges, leaving many vulnerable to exploitation by trafficking networks.

Criminal groups operating along the Bangladesh-Burma border have exploited these vulnerabilities, targeting Rohingya refugees with promises of employment and passage to countries such as Malaysia before subjecting them to kidnapping, extortion and trafficking.