2015 Mecca execution video falsely shared as Saudi Arabia beheading Bangladeshi couple “for kissing in a mosque”
2015 Mecca execution video falsely shared as Saudi Arabia beheading Bangladeshi couple “for kissing in a mosque”
Executive Summaryसारांश
Viral posts claim a video shows Saudi Arabia executing a Bangladeshi couple for kissing in a mosque in Mecca. Fact-checkers have rated the claim misleading. The footage is from January 2015 and shows the execution of a Burmese woman convicted of murder, not the Bangladeshi nationals executed in October 2026.Viral posts claim a video shows Saudi Arabia executing a Bangladeshi couple for kissing in a mosque in Mecca. Fact-checkers have rated the claim misleading. The footage is from January 2015 and shows the execution of a Burmese woman convicted of murder, not the Bangladeshi nationals executed in October 2026.
Full Reportपूरी रिपोर्ट
On October 19, 2026, several X handles, including “Concerned Citizen (Atheist)” (@samwellsg), Nitish K Yadav (@NITISHK22069083), “Gerrie | On X” (@GerrieOnX) and a Tamil-language account (@Hari46620091), shared a clip of a public execution on a road. They claimed it showed Saudi Arabia killing a Bangladeshi couple for kissing in a mosque in Mecca, and some added that the husband was killed first. Together the posts drew over 1.7 million views. Fact-checkers have rated the claim misleading. The footage was reported in January 2015 by Pakistan’s Dawn and by AP through The Times of Israel, and it shows the execution in Makkah of a Burmese woman, Laila Bin Abdul Muttalib Basim, who had been convicted of murdering and abusing a child. The two Bangladeshi nationals were executed on October 14, 2026, after being convicted of an “indecent act” inside a mosque, according to Saudi authorities quoted by the BBC and The Daily Star. No footage of their execution has been made public, and the “kissing” detail is not part of any official account. Sharing graphic old footage as evidence of a new case spreads both misinformation and distressing content, so such videos should not be shared.
On October 19, 2026, several X handles, including “Concerned Citizen (Atheist)” (@samwellsg), Nitish K Yadav (@NITISHK22069083), “Gerrie | On X” (@GerrieOnX) and a Tamil-language account (@Hari46620091), shared a clip of a public execution on a road. They claimed it showed Saudi Arabia killing a Bangladeshi couple for kissing in a mosque in Mecca, and some added that the husband was killed first. Together the posts drew over 1.7 million views. Fact-checkers have rated the claim misleading. The footage was reported in January 2015 by Pakistan’s Dawn and by AP through The Times of Israel, and it shows the execution in Makkah of a Burmese woman, Laila Bin Abdul Muttalib Basim, who had been convicted of murdering and abusing a child. The two Bangladeshi nationals were executed on October 14, 2026, after being convicted of an “indecent act” inside a mosque, according to Saudi authorities quoted by the BBC and The Daily Star. No footage of their execution has been made public, and the “kissing” detail is not part of any official account. Sharing graphic old footage as evidence of a new case spreads both misinformation and distressing content, so such videos should not be shared.