A total of 312 Bangladeshis, including 13 cabin crew, returned to Dhaka from Saudi Arabia this evening.

Of them, 144 had been stranded in the Gulf country following suspension of air communication between Dhaka and Riyadh due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Apart from those, Saudi Arabia deported around 168 Bangladeshis who were kept at different deportation centres on various charges, including expiry of visa and passport, Golam Mosih, Bangladesh Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, told The Daily Star over telephone.

A special flight of Saudi Airlines the Bangladeshis landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport around 8:30pm, SM Wahidur Rahman, deputy director, station air traffic officer at HSIA, said.

131 of the Bangladeshi returnees had gone to perform hajj and got stuck there for around a month.

Saudi Arabia suspended air communication with Bangladesh in the middle of March following outbreak of coronavirus.