Staff Correspondent

Two Bangladeshis were killed and four others are receiving treatment in intensive care following an attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam said on Sunday.

“We are trying to confirm everyone’s identity,” Shama she told journalists at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

The four injured Bangladeshis are being treated in the intensive care unit at King Khalid Hospital, she said.

Shama said information received from Saudi authorities through Bangladesh’s mission in Riyadh put the overall death toll at 12, with more than 300 people injured and receiving treatment.

She said that Bangladesh mission was working with Saudi authorities to establish the identities of the deceased and injured Bangladeshis.

Officials were also collecting information about the victims’ home districts and families, she said. 
Their families would be contacted as soon as the details were confirmed, she said, adding the government would bear the costs of repatriating the bodies of the deceased Bangladeshis.

The Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment would coordinate with Saudi authorities and the victims’ employers to complete the necessary formalities and bring the bodies home as quickly as possible, she added.

Shama said Bangladesh had already lost 14 nationals in the ongoing Middle East war, including one killed in an earlier Houthi attack in Saudi Arabia.

“We have already lost 14 Bangladeshis in this war. We do not want any more of our remittance warriors to die,” she said.

Expressing profound sorrow over the deaths, she called for an end to the war and attacks that were claiming innocent lives.

Bangladeshi migrant workers leave their families to earn a livelihood abroad and contribute to the country through remittances, she said, describing their deaths as extremely painful.

Shama said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman had repeatedly emphasised that ensuring the safety and welfare of Bangladeshis working abroad was the government’s foremost priority.

The Bangladesh mission was contacting expatriates to assess their condition and issuing guidance to help them remain safe, she added.

Referring to the temporary suspension of Biman Bangladesh Airlines’ Riyadh services, she said the government had received no information that any Bangladeshi aircraft or flight had been damaged in the attack.

The foreign ministry was coordinating with the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, while Bangladesh’s missions in Riyadh and Jeddah were maintaining contact with Saudi authorities and the relevant ministries.

“We would certainly not want any of our aircraft or citizens to face danger in a situation like this,” she said.

Earlier, in a statement, the foreign ministry strongly condemned the deadly Houthi attack on King Khalid International Airport on October 10 and called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and protection of civilians.

The Bangladesh mission in Riyadh was in contact with Saudi authorities to obtain details of the deceased and injured Bangladeshis and facilitate necessary assistance, the statement said.

Bangladesh extended its deepest condolences and heartfelt sympathies to the bereaved families, including those of the Bangladeshi victims, and prayed for the swift and full recovery of the injured.

“Attacks endangering civilian lives and targeting civilian infrastructure are unacceptable and must cease immediately,” the statement said.

Bangladesh reiterated its firm solidarity with the government and the brotherly people of Saudi Arabia.

It also urged the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure and a peaceful resolution of the ongoing crisis through dialogue and diplomacy in the interest of regional peace, security and stability.