Two Bangladeshis executed in Saudi Arabia: Riyadh has still not replied to Dhaka's letter

Riyadh has still not replied to a letter sent by the Bangladesh government over the execution of two Bangladeshi nationals in Saudi Arabia. Foreign ministry spokesperson Shahidul Karim confirmed the information on Wednesday.

Earlier, the death sentences of the two expatriates were carried out on October 14 without any prior information being given to the Bangladesh mission. That the sentences were carried out without informing the mission in advance is at the centre of Dhaka's concern.

After the incident, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaid Islam said at the start of this week that the Bangladesh government had formally sought an explanation from Saudi Arabia.

Dhaka had called for a copy of the court's verdict, details of the specific offences of the accused, and a detailed explanation of why the diplomatic mission was not informed. But as of Wednesday, no reply to that letter had arrived.

Meanwhile, citing a statement from the Saudi interior ministry, local media in that country reported that a Bangladeshi man and a woman were executed after a judicial process over allegations of involvement in immoral activities inside a mosque in the holy city of Makkah.

State Minister Shama Obaid Islam noted that, after receiving the case's final documents and information, the overall matter would be reviewed and the next steps determined through discussions with the Saudi authorities.

At the same time, she advised everyone to remain patient on this sensitive issue. She also advised avoiding misleading information and propaganda spreading on social media.

Notably, Saudi Arabia is one of Bangladesh's principal overseas labour markets. The money sent home by the nearly 3.5 million expatriate workers employed there continues to play a major role in the national economy.

As a result, the legal rights and protection of migrant workers are considered extremely important and sensitive in the bilateral relationship between the two countries.

This incident of sentences being carried out without informing the mission has brought that sensitivity to the fore once again. Questions have been raised over how essential it is for information about legal processes involving expatriate workers to reach the mission in good time.

The next steps now remain stalled while Dhaka waits for a reply to its letter. Dhaka has said that once the copy of the verdict and the details of the offences are in hand, it will review the matter fully and sit in discussion with the Saudi authorities.

All eyes are now on Riyadh's reply. When it arrives, it will not only clarify the picture of these two expatriates' case, but may also open the way for discussion on the process of informing the mission in such incidents in the future.