Thirteen young men from Jamalganj upazila in Sunamganj, Bangladesh, have been taken hostage by a mafia group in Libya while attempting to reach Italy through human traffickers. The victims, who left home on January 28 and arrived in Libya via the UAE, Kuwait, and Egypt, were captured on February 25 in Tripoli. Their families report receiving video calls from the captors showing scenes of torture and demanding ransom payments. Initially, the mafia demanded 2.6 million taka per person but later agreed to release them for 1.2 million taka each.

Relatives identified three local traffickers—Diloara Begum, her son Humayun, and son-in-law Nazrul Islam—as those who arranged the trip for 1.3 million taka per person. These traffickers have since gone into hiding. Families have been selling property and borrowing money to pay ransoms, while one victim, Yasin Mia, reportedly escaped but was detained by Libyan police. Local police in Jamalganj confirmed awareness of the case but said no formal complaint has yet been filed.

Families remain in distress, fearing further harm to their sons if they speak publicly, as the mafia has threatened retaliation following earlier media reports.