Dhaka, Jan 22 (V7N)— Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) reported that a bomb threat was made to a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight via a WhatsApp message from a Pakistani number.
DMP shared this information in a post on their verified Facebook page on Wednesday.
According to the post, at 4:37am on Wednesday, a WhatsApp message was received on the duty officer's phone at the Airport Armed Police Battalion (APBn) office.
The message, sent from a Pakistani number, claimed that the Rome-to-Dhaka flight BG-536 of Biman Bangladesh Airlines was carrying 34 kilograms of high-intensity explosives.
Upon receiving the message, the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) Bomb Disposal Unit and the Canine Unit immediately joined forces to launch an operation.
In a press release issued today, Biman Bangladesh Airlines stated that no explosives were found during the search of the flight.
By 1:30pm, all passengers safely left the airport.
The flight (BG-356) departed from Rome on Tuesday night and landed safely at Dhaka's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 9:20am on Wednesday.
The bomb threat was reported just before the flight landed.
According to the press release from the General Manager of Biman’s Public Relations Department, Bosra Islam, the aircraft landed safely at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.
The airport authorities informed the airline of the bomb threat shortly before its landing.
Following security protocols, the aircraft was taken into a secure perimeter immediately after landing.
Passengers were safely disembarked, and a thorough search of the passengers, their baggage, and the aircraft was conducted.
After a comprehensive inspection, the security threat was declared "clear" at 12:30pm.
By 1:30pm, all passengers had safely exited the airport.
Airport sources confirmed that the flight carried 250 passengers and 13 crew members.
END/MSS/AJ
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