Two Bangladeshi nationals were killed in a road accident in Afif area of Jeddah-Riyadh highway in Saudi Arabia on Friday night.
The deceased were identified as Nure Alam, 42, of Basudai village in Nangalkot upazila; and Yunus Mia, 43, of Basuara village under Chouddagram upazila in Cumilla.
They were close friends and business partners in Riyadh.
According to media reports, the victims’ families who received the news on Saturday said the duo was returning to Riyadh from Jeddah with merchandise for their shop.
The accident occurred when their vehicle lost control and collided head-on with another car, leaving both Nure Alam and Yunus Mia dead on the spot. A Saudi national also perished in the collision, while the driver and two others sustained serious injuries. The driver is reported to be in a critical condition.
Both men had planned to return to Bangladesh for the upcoming Eid-ul-Adha.
Yunus Mia’s brother, Omar Faruq Maruf, shared that Yunus was the sole guardian of his family, which includes elderly parents, three daughters, and two sons. He had already purchased his plane ticket to meet his four-month-old son for the first time.
Nure Alam’s wife, Sumi Akter, expressed her desperation, noting that her husband was the only breadwinner for their six-member family. She has appealed to the government for assistance in bringing his body back to Bangladesh swiftly.
Cumilla Deputy Commissioner Md Reza Hasan said while the repatriation of bodies from abroad usually takes time through the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the district administration will provide all necessary cooperation to expedite the process.
