The nation's 15 valiant army personnel for world peace returned home as martyrs in the sombre winter evening yesterday as Bangladesh mourned the tragedy that marked its biggest military loss in a single accident since independence.

The country paused in respect amid a melancholic strain, as a special United Nations (UN) aircraft flew in Zia International Airport at about 6:50pm, carrying the coffins of army officers killed in the December 25 air crash in the West African country of Benin, UNB reports.

Draped in national and UN flags, the bodies were carried off the plane the military way one after another,

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as grieving relatives sobbed and held each other in tears.

Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, who also holds the defence portfolio, received the bodies and showed last respects to the mortal remains at the airport on behalf of the nation with due military honour.

A 103-member team of Bangladesh Army accorded a guard of honour to the officers in the presence of chiefs of the three services Lieutenant General Hasan Mashud Choudhury, Rear Admiral Shah Iqbal Mostaba and Air Vice-Marshal Fakhrul Azam.

LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, Relief and Disaster Management Minister Chowdhury Kamal Ibne Yusuf, Home Minister Altaf Hossain Choudhury, Textiles Minister Abdul Matin Chowdhury, State Minister for Liberation War Affairs Rezaul Karim, State Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Mir Mohammad Nasiruddin and the UN resident coordinator were present.

The officers deployed to

Benin's two strife-riven neighbouring countries Sierra Leone and Liberia on UN peacekeeping missions were among the 119 people killed in the crash that came after Boeing 727 of Union Transport of Africa botched its takeoff, clipping a building before tumbling into the Atlantic Ocean.

The Bangladesh peacekeepers were picked up in Freetown on their way home after serving with UN missions. Fellow servicemen disembarked the coffin of Lieutenant Colonel Shamsul Arefin first from the aircraft at 7:30pm and all coffins were carried to a designated place at the airport by batches of six military pallbearers.

The wife of Captain Alauddin Sardar, another peacekeeper, fainted when her husband's coffin was disembarked. She was treated in an ambulance kept on standby.

The premier placed wreath on each coffin as army bugle played the last post at 8:05pm and consoled the bereaved.

Final prayers were also offered for the peacekeepers -- Lt Col Arefin, Major Abdur Rahim Mia, Major Mirza Abdul Baten, Major Rownak, Major Mustafizur Rahman Chowdhury, Major Musharraf Hossain, Major Imtiaz Uddin Ahmed, Captain Arifur Rahman Talukdar, Captain Abdul Mabud, Captain Rafiqul Islam, Captain Zahidul Islam, Captain Alauddin Sardar, Captain Farid Uddin Ahmed, Captain Raqibul Hassan and Senior Warrant Officer Sahfiqul Islam.

Nine of them will be buried in Banani army graveyard and six in their family graveyards today with state honour after state funerals.

The first namaz-e-janaza will be held in the Army Stadium at 8:00am, followed by a second at 10:00am at the National Eidgah, where the bodies will be kept to enable people to pay their last respect.