Abducted UN official Sufiul not found even after a year

One year has passed since UN official and Bangladeshi citizen AKM Sufiul Anam was abducted in Yemen, but he still couldn't be traced. Sufiul was abducted in war-torn Yemen in February 2022..

Sufiul was chief field security coordination officer of the safety and security department of the UN posted in Aden.

Meanwhile, a five-member team of Bangladesh is likely to go to Yemen and have discussions with different officials on whereabouts of Sufiul.

Colonel Kazi Mohammad Zakaria will lead the delegation. The foreign affairs ministry approved of the visit of the delegation on 29 December.

According to the order of the ministry’s UN desk, the delegation would go to Yemen, Oman, Saudi Abaria, Kuwait and Qatar and if necessary United Arab Emirates. They were likely to start the journey between 15 and 30 January.

Foreign minister AK Abdul Momen told Prothom Alo on 12 January that the delegation would hold talks with officials of various levels there to be apprised of the latest developments.

“We don’t know who exactly abducted him (Sufiul). No one can pinpoint it. We have left no stone unturned. UN is also trying hard. That’s why we are sending a delegation now,” the minister said.

A member of Sufiul’s family told Prothom Alo that they have not been informed of anything as yet. UN contacts the family and offers consolation. The UN also informs the family of their efforts in finding whereabouts of Sufiul.

Sufiul in last September pleaded with the UN and international community to free him from captivity. In a video message he shared the ordeal he is facing and expressed fear that he might be killed if the demands of his captors are not met. The video of Sufiul was released by the abductors. SITE Intelligence Group, an American consultancy group that tracks online activity of terrorist organisation around the world, brought the video to the fore. Sufiul alleged that Al Qaeda militants abducted him.

Sufiul said the video was recorded on 9 August and other colleagues are also held captive along with him.