Sudan conflict: Bangladeshis narrate harrowing tales of looting, torture in Sudan after return

The Bangladesh expatriates, who returned from Sudan on Monday, have narrated their awful experiences of looting and torture that they faced in Sudan.

A total of 136 Bangladeshis, who got trapped in conflict-ragged Sudan, returned home on Monday.

Bangladeshis had to face a terrible situation after the conflict started in the North African country in the middle of April. 

Many have come back from death, they narrated, adding that most of them were looted and tortured there. 

Ershadul, who went to Sudan in 2016, said that all the time he heard the sound of bombs and bullets. 

Bangla Tribune

“I was afraid when the bomb came to our house. Gas, water and electricity were disconnected. Until I went to Saudi on the initiative of the embassy, I did not eat. No water, no gas in the house…and there was no situation to go out.”

This expatriate was not safe even from being stuck inside the house. 

He said: "The robbers shot us and took everything…We are destitute..Those who committed the robbery are Sudanese citizens. But they were wearing masks, so it was not clear who they were.”

Md Rakib, who also returned from Sudan, described the dire situation. 

Bangla Tribune

He said: "We were in a bad situation. There was a lot of suffering due to lack of food and water. Only fear all the time, I thought I was dying in the bomb attack. Many buildings around us were bombed, many people died. I saw the dismembered bodies of people lying there.”

Azizul Islam worked as an electrician in Sudan. He said: “There was a camp of civil force near our house. We heard a lot of gunfire around us. We were at home with the doors and windows closed.”

There was a lot of looting around them. The robber used to go from house to house and loot the goods, he said adding “I have somehow escaped in one cloth.”

A fighting broke out on April 15 between the army and paramilitary forces in the poverty-stricken country with a history of political instability. Since then, several cease-fire agreements have been announced, but none of the parties have accepted them. Hundreds of people, most of them civilians, have been killed in the conflict so far. Thousands of people were injured. These incidents have brought the country's humanitarian crisis to the fore.

Bangla Tribune

More than one million people have already fled Sudan to save their lives.

About 1,500 Bangladeshis lived in Sudan. About 700 of them expressed their interest to leave the country to the Bangladesh Embassy. 

Later, 136 Bangladeshis were brought from Sudan to Jeddah with the help of the embassy and Saudi Arabia. Later, they were brought back to the country from Saudi Arabia on a Bangladesh Airlines flight.