Deadly protests in Bangladesh have forced Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign and flee the country, Reuters reported Monday.
After weeks of violent demonstrations, Hasina reportedly decided to resign in order to quell further unrest, according to Reuters.
As the South Asian nation decides who will control the country, army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman called for calm and said that an interim government has taken control and will run Bangladeshi affairs, Reuters reported. (RELATED: Bangladesh Reportedly Manipulates Internet As Students Mass Riot Against Government)
#BreakingNews | Bangladesh Army to form interim government, Army Chief after Hasina flees the nation
“Army will take over” Bangladesh HM @asaduzzaman_mp confirms #SheikhHasina #BangladeshBleeding #BangladeshProtest | Avantika Singh @siddhantvm @KamalikaSengupt pic.twitter.com/pW6LVk4ZuN
— News18 (@CNNnews18) August 5, 2024
Although a curfew was issued after violence Sunday night claimed close to 100 lives, huge crowds ignored it and reportedly stormed Hasina’s palace in the capital, Dhaka, preventing her from giving a speech. They forced her to escape by military helicopter to India, according to the outlet.
DHAKA, BANGLADESH, AUGUST 4: Aerial view of 4 dead bodies are brought from Dhaka Medical College who have been killed during the protest to Central Shahid Minar, Dhaka Bangladesh. 4 July 2024. The anti-discrimination student Movement announced the first day of the non-cooperation movement. (Photo By Habibul Haque/Drik/Getty Images)
DHAKA, BANGLADESH, AUGUST 03: The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement holds a rally at Central Shaheed Minar August 3, 2024, in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The protesters are demanding justice for those killed in the recent anti-quota protests. (Photo by Suman Kanti Paul/Drik/Getty Images)
DHAKA, BANGLADESH – AUGUST 2: Activists take part in a protest march as they demand justice for victims arrested and killed in the recent countrywide violenceon August 2, 2024 in Dhaka, Bangladesh.Demonstrations in Bangladesh after August 2 prayers demanded justice for victims of nationwide unrest and police crackdown after the release of protest leaders failed to quell public anger. (Photo by Suman Kanti Paul/Drik/Getty Images)
Hasina, who ruled the country for nearly two decades, was seen as responsible for authorities’ attempts to crush weeks of protest that resulted in the deaths of 300 people, Reuters reported.
Protesters began to celebrate after news of Hasina’s departure spread, according to Reuters.
Al Jazeera’s correspondent, Tanvir Chowdhury, said he had “never witnessed something like this” in Dhaka and that the celebrations included “not just students” but “people from all walks of life.”
“They said this had to happen, there was nothing we could say, democracy was squeezed and now we are free,” Chowdhury added.
A garment store is reportedly set ablaze by a group of unidentified miscreants in Dhaka on August 4, 2024. (Photo by ABU SUFIAN JEWEL/AFP via Getty Images)
Police use tear gas to disperse student protestors in Bogura on August 4, 2024. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images)
People gather to celebrate the fall of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina after an intense clash between police, pro-government forces, and anti-Quota protesters in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on August 5, 2024. (Photo by ANIK RAHMAN/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
Anti-government protestors display Bangladesh’s national flag as they storm Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s palace in Dhaka on August 5, 2024. Bangladesh army chief Waker-Uz-Zaman spent nearly four decades rising to the top of the military and said on August 5, he was “taking full responsibility” after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted and fled. (Photo by K M ASAD/AFP via Getty Images)
Army chief Waker-Uz-Zaman specifically attempted to calm fears that Bangladesh would return to the military-style type government that ruled the country in the 1970s and 1980s after its independence from Pakistan in 1971, according to Reuters.
“We will also ensure that justice is served for every death and crime that occurred during the protests,” the general said as he urged the public to be patient and refrain violence and vandalism.
Irene Khan, a UN special rapporteur, told Al-Jazeera that the military faces a “very tough job ahead,” adding, “We are all hoping that the transition would be peaceful and that there will be accountability for all the human rights violations that have taken place.”
