BGB dismisses reports of 33 missing members at sea as baseless

The Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) has denied social media reports claiming that 33 of its personnel went missing during an operation in the Naf River along the Myanmar border. The force has labeled these reports as "baseless and intentionally misleading."  

The BGB says that a BGB member went missing while trying to rescue them when a boat carrying Rohingyas capsized in strong currents. The rescue operation is ongoing.

This was announced in a post on the BGB's verified Facebook page on Saturday night.

"Propaganda is being spread on various social media, claiming that 33 BGB members went missing in the Naf River over the past two days. These rumors have come to our attention, and we confirm that this information is completely untrue and deliberately spread with ill intent," BGB said.  

Detailing the actual incident, BGB reported that at dawn on March 22, a boat carrying Rohingya refugees capsized near the western shore of Shah Porir Dwip in Teknaf due to strong currents.  

Upon receiving the news, on-duty BGB personnel, along with local fishermen, immediately rushed to the scene and managed to rescue 24 Rohingya refugees. However, during the operation, rough sea conditions and darkness caused one BGB member to slip and go missing.  

The Facebook post said that 24 Rohingyas were rescued alive along with the sunken boat. The accident is very heartbreaking. Rescue work is ongoing for the missing BGB member and other Rohingyas.