Jahangir Hossain (24), a resident of Kandail Bagpara village under Jaika Union in Karimganj Upazila, Kishoreganj, and the son of late Habibur Rahman, has lost his life in a Ukrainian drone attack on the battlefields of Russia.
Jahangir was the eldest among three siblings. In his personal life, he was married and had a two-year-old son. His untimely demise has cast a deep shadow of grief over his family and the local community.
The news of his death was shared by his fellow fighter, Mridul Hossain from Narsingdi, who is currently stationed in Russia.
On Friday afternoon, Mridul went live on Facebook, stating that he, along with seven other Bangladeshis, had been fighting on the frontline for the Russian army against Ukraine since May 18. During this time, three of them were killed in a Ukrainian drone attack. One of the deceased was Md. Jahangir Hossain. The other two victims were Md. Suruj Kazi from Madaripur and Yusuf Khan from Comilla district.
In his video message, Mridul alleged that fraudulent activities by a recruiting agency led them to this tragic fate.
“We were brought to Russia with the promise of jobs. Later, we were forcibly sent to the army. Today, I lost three of my friends,” Mridul said.
Jahangir’s cousin, Md. Ramzan, shared that an agency had taken Jahangir to Russia three and a half months ago under the pretext of a company job. Initially, he was put to work on a pig farm. Unable to get proper food, he fell ill. Later, under the guise of providing a restaurant job, Jahangir and six other Bangladeshis were handed over to the Russian military.
“They had no choice. The entire process was done by force. After being given two months of training, they were sent to the battlefield. Jahangir died within a week of arriving there,” Ramzan said.
Family members revealed that only Jahangir’s wife knew about his joining the army; he had not informed anyone else in the family. His last conversation with the family took place two weeks ago, when he mentioned that he would not be able to contact them for a few days.
Humayun Kabir, the Chairman of Jaika Union Parishad, said, “The incident is deeply heartbreaking. It is hard to accept that a young life has been lost this way.”
Emranul Kabir, the Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Karimganj Police Station, stated that Jahangir’s death was confirmed after speaking with his family.