Bangladesh’s Prime Minister has resigned and fled to India following weeks of deadly protests in the country.
Reports of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, 76, resigning were confirmed by the army and Bangladesh High Commission Officials in Delhi. According to the country’s leading national paper, Hasina and her sister took a military helicopter to India, where they are taking “safe shelter” away from her official residence, according to Reuters.
At least 95 people, including 14 police officers, died in clashes in the capital on Sunday, while hundreds more were injured. On Monday, at least six people were reportedly killed in clashes between police and protesters in the Jatrabari and Dhaka Medical College areas.
The deadly protests began in July as a student movement against civil service job quotas but later evolved to reflect broader frustrations about the economy, corruption, and the country’s authoritarian turn under Ms. Hasina’s government. Despite security forces supporting Ms. Hasina’s government throughout the unrest, protesters defied curfews and deadly force.
Sunday marked the deadliest day of the unrest, with at least 94 people killed, including 14 police officers. Protesters and government supporters clashed with sticks and knives, and security forces opened fire. The violence brought the total number of people killed since the protests began to at least 300, according to an AFP tally based on data from police, government officials, and hospital doctors.
Mr. Waker told officers on Saturday that the military “always stood by the people,” according to an official statement.
Ms. Hasina, the longest-serving female leader in the world, survived numerous assassination attempts and jail time. However, her tenure was marked by accusations of forced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and a crackdown on her critics, which she denies.
Ms. Hasina reportedly fled the country as anti-government protesters vowed to march to the capital to demand her resignation on Monday.
