The prime minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, has resigned and left the country amid some of the worst violence since the birth of the south Asian country more than 50 years ago. The country's army chief, Waker-Uz-Zaman, announced he was assuming control at 'a critical time for our country' and would establish an interim government. Hasina, who has ruled Bangladesh since 2009, fled by helicopter shortly after protesters had stormed her residence in the capital, Dhaka. The protests began over a quota system that was said to disproportionately allocate government jobs to the descendants of freedom fighters from the 1971 independence war. The government’s harsh crackdown on the protests has led to hundreds of deaths, which continued despite the supreme court overturning the quota law.

Source: The Guardian August 05, 2024 13:13 UTC