Riyadh, 20 October 2026: There are many countries in the world where due to poverty and lack of employment, people go abroad in search of a better future. Thousands of people from countries like Bangladesh also go to Saudi Arabia to support their families. But, in the country where they go to earn money, sometimes they have to face death penalty for serious crimes. Recently, a shocking incident has come to light in which a Bangladeshi man and woman were hanged in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. So far, 330 people are known to have been given death sentence in Saudi Arabia.
According to Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Interior, Nazrul Islam Abdul Bashir and Siti Akhtar were found guilty of alleged immoral acts at a mosque in Mecca. According to the Saudi Press Agency report, the court had given the death penalty to both of them, keeping in mind the seriousness of the crime and the sanctity of the mosque. However, the details of the alleged incident were not made public by the officials.
According to the information received, an appeal was made in the Supreme Court against this decision of the lower court, but the sentence remained the same. Subsequently, on the basis of royal orders, both of them were hanged on 14 October. The Bangladesh Consulate in Jeddah had said that no official notice was given in this regard before he was hanged. The embassy has sent a letter to the Saudi Foreign Ministry seeking formal confirmation in this matter.
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Death penalty statistics and foreign nationals in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia's use of the death penalty has long been a matter of international concern. According to Reuters report, figures have emerged that 330 people have been hanged so far in 2024. Amnesty International's old data shows that cases of giving death penalty to foreign nationals in Saudi Arabia have been happening in the past as well. If we look at the figures, 21 citizens of Pakistan, 20 of Yemen and 14 of Syria have been hanged in the past. Apart from this, 10 citizens of Nigeria, 9 from Egypt, 8 from Jordan and 7 from Ethiopia are included. While 3 citizens each from Sudan, India and Afghanistan and 1 citizen each from Sri Lanka, Eritrea and Philippines were also given death penalty.
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In 2011 also eight Bangladeshis were hanged
A famous case of Bangladeshi citizens getting death penalty in Saudi Arabia came to light on 7 October 2011. On that day, eight Bangladeshi migrant workers were publicly beheaded in the capital Riyadh. He was convicted in April 2007 of the alleged murder of an Egyptian national. According to Amnesty International, the incident was linked to a brawl between Bangladeshi workers and others, which sparked controversy.