Bangladesh Prime Minister resigns, flees as protesters storm palace

Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has resigned and fled the country following weeks of deadly protests in the South Asian country.

In an address to the nation, army chief Waker-Uz-Zaman announced that an interim government will now run Bangladesh and called for calm, Al Jazeera reported.

Ms Hasina, who ruled the country for close to two decades, boarded a military helicopter on Monday, an aide told Al Jazeera, as huge crowds ignored a national curfew to storm her palace in Dhaka.

Her resignation came after 300 people died in weeks of protest that the authorities sought to crush. A night of deadly violence on Sunday killed close to 100 and a curfew was called.

On Monday, soldiers patrolled the streets. However, protesters remained defiant and called for a march on Dhaka as crowds swelled in the capital.

Dozens of people have been killed and hundreds injured as anti-government protests swept over the past weeks. Local newspaper Prothom Alo, said at least 95 people, including at least 14 police officers, had died on Sunday in the violence.

The death toll was the highest for a single day from any protests in Bangladesh’s recent history, according to Reuters news agency.

Huge numbers stormed the prime minister’s palace on Monday, preventing Ms Hasina from delivering a speech. By early afternoon, the mood on the street had turned to one of celebration after the news of the Prime Minister’s departure spread.

Protests began last month after student groups demanded the scrapping of a controversial quota system in government jobs.

The demonstration has now escalated into a campaign to remove Ms Hasina, who won a fourth straight term in January in an election boycotted by the opposition.

The prime minister said the protesters who engaged in “sabotage” and destruction were no longer students but criminals, and that people should deal with them with iron hands.

The government announced a holiday from Monday to Wednesday. Courts were to be closed indefinitely, while mobile internet services were cut off, and Facebook and messaging apps, including WhatsApp, were inaccessible.

The AP reported that at least 11,000 people have been arrested in recent weeks. The unrest has also resulted in the closure of schools and universities across the country, and authorities at one point imposed a shoot-on-sight curfew.

In Dhaka’s Uttara neighbourhood, the AP said police fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of people who blocked a major highway. Protesters attacked homes and vandalised a community welfare office in the area, where hundreds of ruling party activists took up positions. Some crude bombs were detonated, and gunshots were heard, witnesses said. At least 20 people were hit by bullets in the area, the AP reported.

The UN’s human rights chief, Volker Türk, called for an end to the “shocking violence” and urged restraint from Bangladeshi politicians and security forces.

He expressed particular concern over a mass march planned in Dhaka on Monday, warning of a risk of “further loss of life and wider destruction.”

“The government must cease targeting those participating peacefully in the protest movement, immediately release those arbitrarily detained, restore full internet access, and create conditions for meaningful dialogue,” Mr Turk added.

The continuing effort to suppress popular discontent, including through the excessive use of force, and the deliberate spread of misinformation and incitement to violence, must immediately cease,” Mr Türk added.

It is unclear if the protesters will stay off the streets with Ms Hasina’s resignation.