"A labour recruiter persuaded Maksudur Rahman to leave the tropical warmth of his hometown in Bangladesh and travel thousands of miles to frigid Russia for a job as a janitor. Within weeks, he found himself on the front lines of Russia's war in Ukraine. list of 4 itemsend of list An investigation by The Associated Press news agency published on Tuesday found that Bangladeshi workers were lured to Russia under the false promise of civilian work, only to be thrust into the nearly four-year war. Many were threatened with violence, imprisonment or death."
"AP spoke with three Bangladeshi men who escaped from the Russian military, including Rahman, who said that after arriving in Moscow, he and a group of fellow Bangladeshi workers were told to sign Russian documents that turned out to be military contracts. They were taken to an army camp for training in drone warfare techniques, medical evacuation procedures and basic combat skills using heavy weapons."
"Rahman protested, complaining that this was not the work he agreed to do. A Russian commander offered a stark reply through a translation app: Your agent sent you here. We bought you. Rahman said the workers in his group were threatened with 10-year jail terms and beaten. They'd say, Why don't you work? Why are you crying?' and kick us, said Rahman, who escaped and returned home after seven months."
Labour recruiters in Bangladesh enticed men with offers of civilian jobs in Russia. Upon arrival, many were made to sign Russian documents that were actually military contracts and taken to army camps for training in drone warfare, medical evacuation procedures and heavy-weapons combat. Workers protested and were threatened with violence, imprisonment or death. Some were beaten and coerced onto front lines; several escaped and returned home while relatives reported others missing. Travel papers, military contracts, medical and police reports, and photos document visas, injuries and participation in combat.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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