Six Britons have been killed in a road crash in Saudi Arabia, the Foreign Office says.
It is understood the dead, including a newborn baby, were involved in a minibus crash on a pilgrimage to Mecca.
Four members of a family from Manchester and a couple from Glasgow are thought to have been killed in the accident on Wednesday.
Four other Britons were injured on the bus, which had 12 people on board, including the baby’s mother.
Travel firm Haji Tours named the youngest victim as Muhammad Adam Anis, who was just a few months old, and known as Adam.
It also named the baby’s grandparents among the dead, 64-year-old Khurshid Ahmed and Noshina Ahmed, 49, and family member Rabia Ahmad, 57, who were all from Manchester.
The Manchester-based tour operator, which booked the trip, said it has arranged for relatives to fly from London to Saudi Arabia.
The couple from Scotland were named by Glasgow Central Mosque as Mohammad Aslam and Talat Aslam, who have five children.
Among the injured was a 63-year-old woman, now in a critical condition, while the baby’s mother and two children, aged two and four, are in a stable condition, Haji Tours said.
A Foreign Office spokesman said consular assistance was being provided to relatives.
“We are supporting the families of six British people who have sadly died following a road accident in Saudi Arabia,” the spokesman said.
“We are also helping several more British nationals who were injured in the crash,” he added.
“Our thoughts are with the victims and their families at this very difficult time.”
Haji Tours said it was the first accident it had been involved in during nearly 15 years of running tours there.
It is believed those involved were in Saudi Arabia for Umrah – a pilgrimage to Mecca which can be undertaken at any time of the year.
‘Popular’ couple
The Britons had been in Mecca for five days and were thought to be on their way to the Prophet’s Mosque, a holy site in Medina.
Glasgow Central Mosque said Mr and Mrs Aslam were “popular members of the community”.
“They had just completed Umrah and were travelling in a minibus,” a statement released by the mosque said.
“Tragically they were involved in a fatal accident.”
The statement added: “We would kindly request the family be given space and time to grieve for their loved ones and to come to terms with their sudden loss.”
Nearly 7,800 people died on Saudi Arabian roads in 2013, according to police records compiled by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The data says 27.4 out of 100,000 Saudis were killed on roads in one year, compared with a recorded 2.9 per 100,000 people living in the UK.
[Source:- BBC]
