An estimated 16,000 Bangladeshis are being held in prisons across Saudi Arabia. However, the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment and the Wage Earners’ Welfare Board have no official or comprehensive statistics on the number. The estimate is based on information provided by officials at the Bangladesh Embassy in Riyadh.

Following the execution of two Bangladeshis in Saudi Arabia last Wednesday, the authorities concerned have taken steps to collect information on Bangladeshis imprisoned abroad. Letters are being prepared for Bangladeshi diplomatic missions seeking comprehensive details about the detainees, said Md Asaduzzaman, director general of the Wage Earners’ Welfare Board. He added that efforts had also begun to collect detailed information about expatriates facing criminal sentences.

In February this year, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed the Bangladesh Consulate General in Jeddah, through a note verbale, about 158 Bangladeshi prisoners. According to an analysis by Agamir Shomoy, around 48 per cent of those detainees faced drug-related charges, while 8 per cent were accused of theft. Others were detained on various allegations, including bribery, harassment, immoral activities, fraud, violations of information and communications technology laws, and money laundering.

Mohammad Ali, a man from Sylhet, worked as a driver in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh. He was detained seven months ago and sent to a deportation centre on allegations that he had worked for someone other than his employer. His nephew, Kamal Mia, said Mohammad Ali occasionally called home from detention. However, the family did not know what steps to take to resolve the legal complications.

International human rights organisations have alleged that poor and low-income migrant workers in Saudi Arabia face various forms of discrimination in the judicial process. Reports have also raised concerns about a lack of interpreters, migrants’ inability to afford lawyers, and allegations of forced confessions. Following the recent executions of two Bangladeshis, questions have emerged over whether they received adequate consular assistance. Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the matter came to its attention after reports appeared in the media.

Both Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia are signatories to the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. Under the convention, when a foreign national is arrested, the authorities are required to inform the consular officials of that person’s country if the detainee requests it. However, it remains unclear whether the procedure was properly followed in the cases of the two Bangladeshis who were executed.

Saudi Arabia is one of Bangladesh’s largest overseas labour markets. According to the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET), between six million and 6.5 million Bangladeshis currently live and work in the country. Around 750,000 Bangladeshi workers travelled to Saudi Arabia in 2025. The kingdom is also one of Bangladesh’s major sources of remittances. During the 2025–26 fiscal year, Bangladesh received $5.84887 billion in remittances from Saudi Arabia, accounting for approximately 16.4 per cent of the country’s total remittance inflow.

Human rights organisations say the number of executions in Saudi Arabia has risen in recent years. Reports by various organisations indicate that more than 2,000 people were executed in the country between January 2014 and April 2026. The organisations claim that a large proportion of those executed were foreign workers.

Dr Selim Reza, an associate professor at North South University and director of its Centre for Migration Studies, has stressed the need to familiarise migrant workers with Saudi Arabia’s laws before they travel and to increase staffing at Bangladesh’s diplomatic missions. He said insufficient knowledge of local laws increases the risk of expatriates becoming entangled in unexpected legal complications.

Under Bangladesh’s Overseas Employment and Migrants Act 2013, the labour welfare wings of Bangladeshi embassies are responsible for protecting expatriates’ rights and providing consular and legal assistance when they face legal difficulties abroad. However, a study by Bangladesh University of Professionals identified shortages of personnel, logistical resources and legal funding in the labour welfare wing serving Saudi Arabia.

As a result, providing legal assistance to expatriates and monitoring their working conditions has become increasingly difficult given the limited capacity available to serve such a large workforce. Collecting accurate information about Bangladeshis imprisoned abroad, ensuring effective consular assistance and expanding access to legal support remain major challenges for the relevant authorities.