Two Bangladeshis killed in Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia, 22,241 passengers stranded in Dhaka as 146 flights are cancelled

Flights on several Saudi Arabia-bound routes remain suspended after the Houthi attacks. So far, 146 flights have been cancelled. As a result, 22,241 passengers are stranded in Dhaka.

Biman Bangladesh Airlines gave the information in a press release on Tuesday (27 October).

So far, two Bangladeshis have been killed in Houthi missile attacks in Saudi Arabia. The dead are Md Shahed Ahmed of Shahjahanpur in Bogura and Nasrullah Badrpuri of Nangalkot in Cumilla. Another 27 Bangladeshis have been injured.

After the Houthi attack on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport on 10 October this month, the Saudi authorities kept operations at Riyadh and Dammam airports closed.

State carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines had, however, kept flights operating on the Dammam route. The Houthis also attacked that airport. After that, all flights from Dhaka to Riyadh and Dammam have remained suspended.

The release said 69 of the cancelled flights were direct flights. Another 77 transit flights were cancelled. A large share of the stranded passengers are Bangladeshi expatriates in Saudi Arabia.

Among the direct flights, Biman Bangladesh Airlines has so far cancelled 29 flights. US-Bangla Airlines has cancelled 10, Saudia Airlines 19 and Riyadh Airways 11 flights.

Among the airlines whose transit flights were cancelled, IndiGo has cancelled the most flights. The airline has cancelled 30 flights.

In addition, SalamAir has cancelled seven flights, Emirates 14, Qatar Airways nine, EgyptAir one, flydubai eight and Air India eight flights.