An Indian expat passed away this week in the UAE, distraught at the loss of his twin brother. The Dubai resident, who had been living and working in the country for over eight years, died due to a heart attack.

"His twin brother - who was older by a few minutes - had died in India just three days earlier," said Indian social worker Ashraf Thamarassery. “The brothers were extremely close to each other, and the man was absolutely heartbroken. On the day he died, he told his roommates that he wished God had taken him instead of his brother. Within half an hour of saying that he was dead.”

Upon completion of the final rites, the remains of the man were flown to his hometown of Thiruvananthapuram in the southern Indian state of Kerala and buried next to his older twin brother.

The brothers were always known to be together. “From their school time, they were always with each other,” said Ashraf. “They went to the same school and college. They had the same group of friends and even married twin sisters.”

The brother who lived in India was the older one, and had always been protective of his twin. “Even when the younger one came to the UAE for work, their bond remained unshakeable,” said Ashraf. “The older twin took care of the younger one’s family who remained in India. They spoke almost every day and were extremely close to each other.”

When the ‘older’ brother died at the beginning of the year, his twin in Dubai was distraught and inconsolable. “His roommates said that he was in tears all day long and found it difficult to eat and sleep,” said Ashraf. “Within three days of his brother’s death, he also died. The formalities were completed and his body was flown to his hometown where he was buried close to his brother. This was truly a life-and-death situation."