New Zealand will arrange for one close relative from the family of each Bangladeshi who died in the Christchurch attack to travel to the country, the state minister for foreign affairs said.
Md Shahriar Alam told bdnews24.com that the New Zealand government had conveyed the information to Bangladesh and that the relatives would be able to bring the bodies home. The death toll in the mosque shootings rose to 50 on Sunday after police found another victim at one of the mosques. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said bodies of those killed would begin to be released to the families for burial. State Minister Alam said on Sunday that four Bangladeshis had died in the attacks, two more than the figure he had given previously on Saturday. The latest figure was based on information collected from the Bangladeshi community there, he said.
New Zealand authorities have confirmed the death of Dr Abdus Samad and Hosne Ara Ahmed, Alam said.
He said Dr Samad’s family has decided to bury him locally and his eldest son will go to New Zealand from Bangladesh for the service.
