Monday, October 10, 2011

Saudi government's efforts to save the eight Bangladeshi

The Saudi ambassador to Bangladesh said on Monday his government extended full support to Bangladesh government in pursuing to stop the execution of eight Bangladeshi workers in the country.

“But the efforts did not work,” Dr Abdullah.N. Al Bussairy said at a press briefing at his residence in the capital.

Despite Bangladesh's repeated pleas for clemency, Saudi Arabia on Friday executed the eight Bangladeshi workers for their involvement in a robbery and subsequent murder of an Egyptian security guard in Riyadh in 2007.

The Saudi government assisted Bangladesh government’s effort to pay blood money to the family of the Egyptian national, whose killing earned the eight Bangladeshis the capital punishment, but the victim’s family did not agree to the proposal, the Saudi ambassador told the press conference Monday.

A Saudi citizen was beheaded the same day for killing an Afghan national, the ambassador said, adding that the Saudi government moved for clemency to its citizen in exchange of blood money but also failed in convincing the victim’s family.

He also said Bangladesh government was instrumental to have its nationals cleared of the charge over four years when the trial was in progress.

The Bangladeshi migrant workers, who were beheaded in public in the Saudi capital, were Suman Mia from Kishoreganj, Mohammad Suman, Mamun Abdul Mannan, Masud Shamsul Haque and Shafiqul Islam from Tangail, Faruk Jamal from Comilla, Abul Hossain and Matiar Rahman from Faridpur.

Three other Bangladeshis -- Abdus Salam, Masud Rana, Alam -- were sentenced by the kingdom's highest court to imprisonment for different terms and flogging for their involvement in the incident, Bangladesh embassy officials in Riyadh told The Daily Star.

The 11 Bangladeshi workers killed Egyptian security guard Saeed Mohammed Abdulkhaleq while stealing electric cables from a warehouse in Riyadh on April 22, 2007, as documented in case statements.

Source: The Daily Star

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