SAUDI ARABIA: DHAKA SEEKS CLEMENCY FOR 8 CITIZENS ON DEATH ROW IN S ARABIA

Bangladesh President Iajuddin Ahmed sought amnesty from Saudi Arabia for eight Bangladeshis sentenced to death on a murder charge, foreign ministry and Bangabhaban presidential palace officials said. In a letter to Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, the president sought clemency for them as a Saudi court handed down the death penalty for the murder of an Egyptian national last year. A foreign ministry spokesperson said diplomatic efforts are underway to liaise with the family of the murdered person and negotiate a settlement by payment of blood money. The Bangladesh ambassador in Riyadh has been asked to urge the community in Saudi Arabia to raise the requisite amounts for payment of the compensation as the 'blood money' in line with the Saudi conventions. Three other Bangladeshis were sentenced to 12 years rigorous imprisonment on the same charge.