Bangladesh seeks confirmation of woman’s reported execution in Saudi Arabia

DHAKA/NEW DELHI : The family of Siti Akhtar, a Bangladeshi woman identified by Saudi authorities as one of two nationals executed in the Mecca region on October 14, is awaiting official confirmation of her death, according to media reports.

Akhtar’s father, Fazal Mia, told Bangladesh’s The Daily Star that the family learnt of the reported execution through others and had received no formal confirmation from the authorities. He said his daughter had spoken to the family by telephone about 15 days before the news emerged but had not mentioned her death sentence.

Saudi Arabia’s Interior Ministry said on October 14 that a Bangladeshi man and woman had been executed in the Mecca region after a court convicted them of committing what the authorities described as an “indecent act” inside a mosque. The Saudi Press Agency identified them as Nazrul Islam Abdul Basir and Siti Akhtar.

The ministry said the court had imposed the death sentences under ta’zir, a category of punishment under Islamic law that allows judicial discretion in determining offences and penalties. The verdicts were upheld by the relevant judicial authority, and a royal order was issued for their implementation, it said.

However, the Saudi statement did not specify the nature of the alleged act, identify the mosque concerned or disclose when the two individuals were arrested.

Family says woman had claimed she was framed

Akhtar’s father, a resident of Tangail district in Bangladesh, said he had borrowed 150,000 taka to send his youngest daughter to Saudi Arabia about four years ago in search of employment.

According to his account to The Daily Star, she sent money home during the first five months after arriving in the country. She subsequently informed her family that she had been jailed following a dispute with other women workers and maintained that she had been framed.

The family lost contact with her for about a year before communication resumed through occasional telephone calls. Her father said she did not discuss the details of the case, the trial or the sentence during these conversations.

In one of their last conversations, she reportedly told the family that she might be released from prison within two months. Her father said the family had since been left uncertain about her fate.

Bangladesh seeks information from Saudi Arabia

Bangladesh has sought clarification from Saudi Arabia over the executions and the circumstances surrounding the cases.

The Bangladesh Consulate General in Jeddah said it had not been informed of the executions beforehand. It also said it had submitted a formal diplomatic communication, known as a note verbale, to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs seeking acknowledgement of the matter.

Bangladesh’s Foreign Ministry has said it is aware of the execution of two Bangladeshi nationals but has not independently confirmed their identities, according to reports. The government is seeking details about the alleged offences and the legal proceedings.

The lack of prior notification and the uncertainty surrounding the cases have raised questions in Bangladesh about the information made available to the authorities and the circumstances of the executions.

The Saudi Interior Ministry has not publicly disclosed further details about the alleged conduct or the legal representation available to the two individuals.

Akhtar’s family continues to await formal confirmation, leaving unresolved the immediate question of whether she was among those executed on October 14.