Watch: UAEU honours 20-year-old student killed in crash days before her graduation

Al Ain / Ras Al Khaimah: The father of an Emirati student who died in a road accident before completing her university studies attended her graduation ceremony to accept an academic excellence certificate in her memory, as the UAEU University fulfilled her mother’s wish to see her daughter honoured among her graduating classmates.

On Thursday, October 22, Bainah Daeij Khalaf Al Karab Al Ali, 20, was honoured in absentia at the beginning of the university’s graduation ceremony for the 2026–2027 academic year, with her father, Daeij Khalaf Al Karab Al Ali, receiving the certificate on her behalf.

Bainah was in her fourth year at UAEU’s College of Science and approaching graduation when she died in a road accident on Al Dhaid Road on Friday, October 16.

Her death left her family grieving the loss of a daughter whose academic achievements they had only begun to fully appreciate through the words of her professors and classmates.

Speaking to Gulf News after the ceremony, her father said the occasion brought together the pride of seeing his daughter’s achievements recognised and the pain of knowing she was no longer there to celebrate them.

“I do not know what to say. My feelings of happiness and sadness were mixed on this occasion. Praise be to God in all circumstances,” he said.

“This recognition means a great deal to my late daughter. The university spared no effort in comforting us and honouring her memory.”

He said the university had arranged for Bainah to be honoured at the start of the ceremony and had taken special care of the family throughout their visit, from their arrival on campus until their departure.

“They handed us Bainah’s certificate of excellence, and her tribute took place at the beginning of the ceremony. From the moment we entered the university until we left, they did everything they could for us. They welcomed us with great care and respect and seated us in the front rows,” he said.

The father also recalled meeting Zaki Nusseibeh, Cultural Adviser to the UAE President and Chancellor of UAEU, who offered his condolences and expressed sympathy over the family’s loss.

“I extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to Zaki Nusseibeh, the university director and everyone involved in the graduation ceremony for the care, sympathy and respect they showed my late daughter, and for supporting our family,” he said.

“We are grateful to them from the bottom of our hearts. They treated Bainah as if she were their own daughter, not merely a student at the university.”

Nusseibeh said the university was keen to recognise Bainah at the beginning of the graduation ceremony, describing the tribute as a meaningful way to preserve her memory and acknowledge her academic achievements.

In a moving moment, the ceremony’s presenter spoke about Bainah’s death, remembered her academic journey and invited those present to pray for God’s mercy and forgiveness.

“It was truly an occasion that was close to our hearts. In the face of such a great loss, we wanted to do something that would preserve her memory,” Nusseibeh said.

He prayed that God would have mercy on Bainah, forgive her and grant her family patience and solace, adding that losing a young student in such circumstances was not easy.

The tribute followed an appeal by Bainah’s mother, who wanted her daughter’s name to remain among those of her graduating classmates and her academic achievements to be recognised despite her absence.

Bainah’s mother had expressed her wish for the university to honour her daughter alongside her graduating cohort, so that her name would remain present among her classmates and professors.

Speaking to Gulf News, the mother, known as Umm Bainah,  said she had not fully realised the extent of her daughter’s academic excellence until relatives and friends began visiting the family to offer their condolences.

During those visits, university professors told her that Bainah had been among the high-achieving students and that her name had appeared on the academic excellence list from her first semester.

Despite the demands of her specialisation, Bainah had maintained her strong academic performance throughout her studies.

The mother said the praise she heard from her daughter’s professors and classmates revealed aspects of Bainah’s university life that she had not previously known.

Their words filled her with pride in her daughter’s achievements but also deepened her grief that Bainah had died before she could complete her studies and celebrate graduation with her family.

Although her mother had hoped to attend the tribute, she was unable to be present at the ceremony. Bainah’s father attended on behalf of the family and received the certificate recognising his daughter’s excellence.

Bainah died on Friday, October 16, after a tanker truck carrying petroleum products collided with the vehicle in which she was travelling with a female university classmate on Al Dhaid Road.

The two students were travelling from Al Ain to Ras Al Khaimah to spend the weekend with their families. Bainah died in the crash, while her friend, who was driving, suffered a fractured hand.

According to her mother, Bainah had decided that day, for the first time, to travel with her friend in the latter’s car so that she would not have to make the journey alone.

The family had no way of knowing that the trip would be Bainah’s last.

At 20, Bainah was in her fourth year at UAEU and nearing the completion of her university studies. Her death cut short a promising academic journey just days before the milestone she and her family had been looking forward to celebrating.

Following the accident, UAEU sent three delegations to offer condolences to Bainah’s family. The university director also contacted them to express sympathy.