Amid violent protests demanding her resignation, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has left the capital Dhaka, according to the media reports.
She and her sister have left Ganabhaban (the Prime Minister’s official residence) for a safer place. She wanted to record a speech. But she could not get an opportunity to do that.
This comes as Bangladesh’s army chief Waker-Uz-Zaman is set to address the country after 98 people were killed in fierce clashes yesterday, taking the death count since protests erupted last month to over 300. Hasina’s son urged the country’s security forces to block any takeover from her rule, while a senior advisor said that her resignation was a possibility after being questioned as to whether she would quit.
Hundreds of thousands of protesters demanding PM Hasina’s resignation defied curfew, marching on the capital’s streets. Soldiers and police with armoured vehicles in Dhaka had barricaded routes to Hasina’s office with barbed wire.
Local media estimated as many as 400,000 protesters were on the streets but it was impossible to verify the figure. ‘The time has come for the final protest’, said Asif Mahmud, one of the key leaders in the nationwide campaign.
Rallies that started last month against civil service job quotas have escalated into some of the worst unrest of Prime Minister Hasina’s 15-year rule and shifted into wider calls for the 76-year-old to step down.
The demonstrations have grown into a wider anti-government movement across Bangladesh. It has attracted people from all strata of Bangladesh society, including film stars, musicians and singers.
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