DHAKA — Bangladesh says Saudi Arabia did not inform it before executing two Bangladeshi citizens in Mecca last week, and Dhaka has formally sought an explanation and the full verdict from Riyadh, officials said. The executions, carried out on Wednesday, October 14, have caused public concern in Bangladesh, where more than three million citizens live and work in Saudi Arabia, many in low-wage jobs, reports said.

Saudi Arabia's Interior Ministry identified the two as Nazrul Islam Abdul Basir and Siti Akhtar and said they were convicted of committing what it described as 'indecent acts' inside a mosque in Mecca, according to a ministry statement published by the Saudi Press Agency and reported by Town Press. The ministry said the death sentences were imposed under tazir — discretionary punishment under Islamic law — were upheld by the country's highest court and authorised by a royal decree, and cited 'the gravity and seriousness of their actions in violating the sanctity of both time and place'. The ministry did not specify what the alleged acts were. Claims circulating on social media about the exact conduct have not been confirmed by Saudi authorities.

Bangladesh's State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam said Dhaka was waiting for an official Saudi response before deciding its next steps, including bringing the bodies home, once Saudi authorities provide the full verdict and the circumstances, reports citing the BBC and Bangladesh's UNB news agency said. A senior foreign ministry official said a diplomatic note was handed to the Saudi ambassador on Sunday seeking details and an explanation. The Daily Star reported that the pair had appeared on a prisoner list Saudi Arabia shared with Bangladesh's Consulate General in Jeddah, but that list did not indicate they had been sentenced to death. Bangladesh's Foreign Minister Humaiun Kobir told reporters on Monday he was 'very disappointed' by the lack of communication and that Dhaka had sought an explanation from its 'friendly bilateral partner', Middle East Eye reported.

Saudi Arabia remains one of the world's most frequent users of the death penalty. Amnesty International recorded 356 executions in the kingdom in 2025, and figures cited from the Saudi Interior Ministry indicate more than 170 people have been executed there so far this year, reports said. On Saturday, the kingdom also executed five Saudi nationals convicted on terrorism-related charges, the Interior Ministry said. For the lakhs of South Asian workers — Bangladeshi, Indian and Punjabi among them — who live in the Gulf, the case underlines why consular notification matters: families and missions say they cannot help, appeal or even prepare if they learn of a death sentence only after it has been carried out. Bangladesh said it would decide further steps after Riyadh replies.

Sources: BBC reporting via Northeast Herald, 'Bangladesh says Saudi Arabia did not tell it before executing two Bangladeshi citizens in Mecca', October 2026; Saudi Interior Ministry statement via Saudi Press Agency, reported by Town Press, 18 October 2026; Middle East Eye via ZeroHedge, October 2026; Daily Star reporting via Reportage, October 2026.