Disasters & Incidents
16 Bangladeshis killed in Riyadh factory fire, Dhaka says
Bangladesh's foreign ministry said on Monday that 16 Bangladeshi nationals were killed in a fire at a sofa manufacturing factory in Riyadh the previous day.
The ministry said it was in “deep shock” over the deaths. Bangladesh's Expatriates' Welfare Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury said Dhaka was in constant communication with local authorities through the Bangladesh Embassy in Saudi Arabia.
Chowdhury said officials had been instructed to speed the repatriation of the bodies and secure government assistance and compensation for the victims' families.
Riyadh civil defence said it had put out a fire at an unlicensed site used for furniture upholstery and that regulatory procedures were completed for the site. The Saudi civil defence statement did not provide casualty details.
Around seven million Bangladeshis work overseas, most of them in the Middle East. Reports in Saudi media estimate that more than three million Bangladeshi nationals live in Saudi Arabia.
Update
Bangladesh's Expatriates' Welfare Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury said officials had been instructed to speed the repatriation of the bodies and secure government assistance and compensation for families.
Riyadh civil defence said it extinguished a fire at an unlicensed site used for furniture upholstery.
Riyadh civil defence said regulatory procedures were completed for the site.
The Saudi civil defence statement did not give casualty details.
The source reported that around seven million Bangladeshis work overseas, most of them in the Middle East.
Source note: AFP news report published on 10 August 2026 at 12:08:10 UTC.
Update
Bangladesh's foreign ministry said the fire was at a sofa manufacturing factory in Riyadh.
The ministry said the fire happened the previous day.
Bangladesh's Expatriates' Welfare Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury said Dhaka was in constant communication with local authorities through its embassy in Saudi Arabia.
Source note: AFP news report published on 10 August 2026 at 11:56:00 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
Saudi civil defence did not provide casualty details in its statement.
The precise cause of the fire was not supplied.
Source
AFP news report published on .