Cumilla youth killed in Russia-Ukraine war, family says

A 24-year-old man from Cumilla’s Chandina upazila has died while fighting in the Russia-Ukraine war, according to his family and local sources.

On Saturday (17 October), one of Mohammad Sagar’s friends in Russia informed his sister over the phone that he had died. The news plunged his family into mourning.

Sagar was the son of Kabir Hossain, a resident of the Chhaykote area in Chandina municipality. He was the youngest of three sisters and two brothers.

He came from a low-income family and had worked as a rickshaw-van driver at a cement shop in the upazila from his teenage years to support his family financially.

In mid-2025, he went to Russia with the help of the shop manager after paying Tk6 lakh. He took a job at a bakery there, earning around Tk70,000 a month.

While in Russia, he met a Bangladeshi broker who reportedly lured him with the promise of a one-time payment of Tk30 lakh to join the Russian army.

In May this year, Sagar reportedly went to fight in the Russia-Ukraine war. His communication with his family stopped afterwards.

Sagar’s uncle Abdul Awal said he had advised Sagar against joining the Russian army when his nephew told him he was leaving his bakery job to enlist.

“He was misled by a broker in that country and recruited as a soldier in the Russia-Ukraine war,” Awal said, adding that Sagar’s friend informed the family of his death.

Sagar’s father Kabir Hossain said he had worked in the vegetable trade and had been suffering from various illnesses for a long time.

“I sent him abroad by borrowing money and taking on debts. I have not been able to speak to my son for around four to five months. Now I hear that my son is no more,” he said.

Chandina Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Md Ashraful Haque said he is unaware of the matter and will look into it.

Dozens of Bangladeshis allegedly lured to Russia with job offers

This is not the first time Bangladeshis have reportedly been lured to Russia with job promises and forced to fight in the war against Ukraine.

On 14 October, the Special Response Battalion (SRB) said a trafficking ring had lured at least 30 Bangladeshis with promises of construction jobs before handing them over to the Russian military.

The recruits reportedly paid around Tk10 lakh each, and their passports and phones were confiscated upon arrival.

They received only 21 days of military training before deployment. At least 20 were killed in drone strikes, including 17 on their first day at the front, the SRB said.

Two survivors returned to Bangladesh injured, two were being treated in Moscow, and six remained on the battlefield. 

The SRB also arrested two alleged ringleaders in connection with the case.