Story Summary:
- More than 300 people have died in violent clashes in Bangladesh.
- Anti-government riots, initially sparked by civil service job quotas, have escalated.
- Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled to India.
- Protests are set to resume, with heavy security deployments in Dhaka.
Anti-government riots in Bangladesh turned violent on Sunday, resulting in over 300 deaths and the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Bangladesh latest news: Here’s everything we know
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The overall death toll from clashes in Bangladesh has risen to at least 300 people after 94 died Sunday, the deadliest day in the weeks of anti-government demonstrations.
This figure comes from reports by police, officials, and hospital doctors.
Protests are set to resume on Monday, with heavy deployments of soldiers and police in the capital Dhaka patrolling key roads and barricading routes to the office of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The riots began last month over the reintroduction of a quota scheme that reserved more than half of all government jobs for certain groups.
Despite the scheme being scaled back by Bangladesh’s top court, the protests have continued and escalated into some of the worst unrest of Hasina’s 15-year rule.
The demonstrations have since evolved into wider calls for the 76-year-old leader to step down.
Sunday’s violence was unprecedented, with hundreds of thousands of protesters and government supporters clashing with sticks and knives, and security forces opening fire with rifles.
Ali Riaz, an Illinois State University politics professor and expert on Bangladesh, described the situation as an “unprecedented popular uprising,” noting the unmatched ferocity of state actors and regime loyalists.
While police imposed a curfew after dark on Sunday and restricted mobile internet nationwide, AFP journalists in Dhaka reported hearing sustained gunfire as protesters defied orders to go home.
Demonstrators in Dhaka, surrounded by a tightly packed and cheering crowd, waved a Bangladeshi flag atop an armoured car as soldiers watched.
Current army chief Waker-uz-Zaman told officers on Saturday that the military “always stood by the people,” although the statement did not explicitly state whether the army supported the protests.
Sheikh Hasina, who has ruled Bangladesh since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January, has been accused by rights groups of using state institutions to entrench her power and stamp out dissent, including through extrajudicial killings of opposition activists.
Following weeks of deadly protests, Hasina resigned and fled to India with her sister, seeking “safe shelter” away from her official residence.
As the situation in Bangladesh remains volatile, the country braces for more protests and potential violence, with heavy security deployments in place to manage the unrest.