At least 17 Bangladeshi migrants drowned in a shipwreck off Tunisia as they tried to cross the Mediterranean to Italy from Libya, while more than 380 were rescued by the coastguard, the Tunisian Red Crescent said on Wednesday.

At least 1,160 Bangladeshi returnee migrants each incurred an average loss of about $2,119, or Tk 1.8 lakh, in wages and other entitlements in six Gulf countries amid the pandemic, according to a new survey report.

Experts in an online consultation yesterday said the expatriates’ welfare ministry needs to spend its fiscal budget aptly to enhance overall labour migration situation, especially on quality training facilities and exploring new markets.

Abusing  visit visas and on-arrival visas, a transnational syndicate has been trafficking people from Bangladesh to different countries, including the Middle East and Europe.

Bangladesh Civil Society for Migrants yesterday urged the government to protect data provided by migrant workers when registering for “Ami Probashi” app, which is a prerequisite for Covid-19 vaccine registration. 

A bus carrying Afghan, Pakistani and Bangladeshi migrants crashed in eastern Turkey early yesterday, killing at least 12 people and injuring 26 others, local authorities said.

A bus carrying Afghan, Pakistani and Bangladeshi migrants crashed in eastern Turkey earlier today, killing at least 12 and injuring 26 others, Reuters reports quoting local authorities.

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has supported 1,473 Bangladeshi migrants in returning home voluntarily last year, the UN migration agency has said.

Malaysia will examine recruitment fees charged to workers and review its agreements with the home countries of migrant workers, the Human Resources Ministry said, after the Southeast Asian nation was downgraded in a US human trafficking report.

The High Court asked the attorney general's office to talk to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) and inquire about vaccinating Bangladeshi students, on a priority basis, who will go abroad to study.

At least 43 migrants, including Bangladeshi nationals, drowned in a shipwreck off Tunisia as they tried to cross the Mediterranean -- from Libya to Italy, while another 84 were rescued, the Tunisian Red Crescent told Reuters today.

The country’s foreign exchange reserve has hit a new record of $46 billion due to the upward trend of remittance and lower import payments.

Malaysian immigration department arrested 309 undocumented migrants, including 102 Bangladeshis, during an operation carried out at a settlement near a construction site in Dengkil early yesterday.

At least 13 Bangladeshi migrants have been missing since a boat capsized with them off the coast of Tunisia almost a month ago.

Around 150 migrants yesterday tried to cross into Spain’s Melilla enclave from neighbouring Morocco in an attempt which was thwarted but left nine police slightly injured, officials said.

A boat carrying dozens of Rohingya refugees that set sail in February but had been adrift in the Andaman Sea with engine failure has landed on an Indonesian island after a voyage of more than 100 days, a human rights official said yesterday.

At least 4,510 Bangladeshis illegally reached Italy, Malta, Spain and Greece by sea and land last year.

Uncertainty over the return of around 25,000 Bangladeshi expatriates to work in Oman and Kuwait is over as Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh has lifted its restriction on travel to Oman, and Kuwait is allowing domestic workers to fly to that country.

With a two-year job “contract” and dreams of a better life, Akhi Begum (not her real name) left for Saudi Arabia in mid-2019.

The return of at least 25,000 Bangladeshi expatriate workers to UAE, Oman, and Kuwait has become uncertain due to the suspension of flights.