The funeral prayers of six Bangladeshi peacekeepers killed in a drone attack on a UN peacekeeping mission in Sudan were held at Dhaka Cantonment on Sunday morning. Top officials of the state and military leadership attended the funeral held at the Central Army Mosque premises at 9:30 am.
Home Affairs Advisor Lt. Gen. (retd.) Md. Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, Army Chief General Waqar-uz-Zaman, Navy and Air Force Chiefs and senior military officials were present at the funeral. Later, wreaths were laid on behalf of the President and the armed forces.
The deceased were Corporal Md. Masud Rana, Private Md. Mominul Islam, Private Shanto Mondal, Private Shamim Reza, Mess Waiter Md. Jahangir Alam and Laundry Worker Md. Sabuj Mia. They were killed in a drone attack by separatist armed groups on a UNISFA mission base in the Abyei area of Sudan on December 13.
Eight other peacekeepers injured in the attack are receiving advanced medical treatment in Nairobi, Kenya; one of them is in critical condition but underwent successful surgery.
Bangladesh, which has participated in UN peacekeeping operations since 1988, has lost 168 members so far. The deaths of six peacekeepers killed in Sudan are the latest addition to that long list of sacrifices.