Second Bangladeshi identified among IS hostages

A second Bangladeshi national has been identified among the nine foreigners abducted by the Islamic State (IS) militant group from an oil field in Libya, according to media reports on Tuesday.

The Bangladeshi foreign ministry said on Tuesday that Mohammad Anowar Hossain, who was earlier believed to be a Sudanese national, was in fact a Bangladeshi, according to a bdnews24.com report.

The foreign ministry said on Monday said Helal Uddin, of Jamalpur district, was the only Bangladeshi taken hostage on Friday when IS gunmen invaded the Al-Ghani oil field south of the Libyan city of Sirte.

The second Bangladeshi hostage, Hossain, reportedly hailed from the Noakhali district and his identity was confirmed by a compatriot working in a neighbouring oil field.

IS militants killed 11 guards, several of whom were beheaded, when they invaded the oilfield.

The Sunni jihadi group IS has seized vast swathes of territory in Iraq since June 2014 and announced the establishment of a caliphate in areas under its control in Iraq and Syria.

The Libyan foreign ministry informed the Bangladesh mission in Tripoli that it was trying "heart and soul to rescue them (the abducted Bangladeshis)".

The ministry said that 21 Bangladeshis employed in another neighbouring oil field were taken "to safe places".