Eight Pakistanis died while six were injured in a fire incident at a hotel in Saudi Arabia’s Makkah city, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Saturday.

In a statement issued today, the FO said, “In an unfortunate fire incident in a hotel in Makkah, we have reports of eight deaths and six injured Pakistanis in the incident.

“Our Mission in Jeddah is in contact with local authorities to provide relief to the victims and their families,” it added.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed deep grief and sorrow over the death of the Pakistani pilgrims, state-run Radio Pakistan reported.

It further said the premier expressed his condolences and sympathies with the bereaved families.

According to Radio Pakistan, PM Shehbaz directed the Ministry of Religious Affairs to provide the best possible medical facilities to the injured and to also facilitate the families of the deceased.

Separately, Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori expressed his condolences as well and said he stood “with the bereaved families in this moment of grief”.

In September 2019, five people were injured in a fire at a new high-speed train station in Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah.

In December 2015, at least 25 people were killed while 107 were injured in a fire at a hospital in the southern part of the country. In August same year, at least 11 were killed and 219 were injured when a fire broke out at a residential complex housing oil giant Saudi Aramco’s employees.