Protests in Bangladesh: Airport Closed, PM Hasina Flees, Army Chief Calls for Peace
Dhaka, Bangladesh – Amid intensified protests, Shahjalal International Airport has closed its operations for six hours. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) announced this information in a circular on Monday.
The protests, mainly by students, demand an end to the quota system for government jobs and have grown into an uprising against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her ruling Awami League party. At least 95 people, including 14 police officers, died, and hundreds were injured in clashes in Dhaka on Sunday.
Earlier today, it was reported that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her sister fled Bangladesh amid ongoing violence. Security agencies in India began monitoring a C-130 Aircraft with call sign AJAX1431 as it flew close to the Indian border.
Army Chief General Waqar-uz-Zaman will soon hold direct talks with student-teacher representatives. Protests and incidents of vandalism were reported from the streets of Dhaka on Monday. Visuals showed people ransacking Sheikh Hasina’s official residence and storming the parliament building.
Shortly after the 76-year-old leader and her sister left the country in a military helicopter, General Waqar-uz-Zaman urged protestors to shun violence and announced that an interim government would soon be formed.
On August 3, organizers of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement demanded the resignation of Hasina and her cabinet members. The announcement came after PM Hasina urged the agitating students to sit with her to end the violence focused on the quota reform protests.
Today, the residence of the Chief Justice was also vandalized. Several people were seen entering the Chief Justice’s residence by climbing over the wall, and reports of vandalism were coming in.
In a televised address, General Waqar-uz-Zaman said, “Maintain peace and order in the country. You trust me, let’s work together. Please help, we won’t get anything by fighting. Avoid conflict. We have built a beautiful country together.”
Doubts Revealed
Bangladesh -: Bangladesh is a country in South Asia, located to the east of India. It has a lot of people and its capital city is Dhaka.
Shahjalal International Airport -: Shahjalal International Airport is the main airport in Bangladesh, located in the capital city, Dhaka. It’s where planes take off and land.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina -: Sheikh Hasina is the leader of Bangladesh. A Prime Minister is like the head of the government, making important decisions for the country.
Awami League party -: The Awami League is a political party in Bangladesh. Political parties are groups of people who have similar ideas about how the country should be run.
Army Chief General Waqar-uz-Zaman -: The Army Chief is the top leader of the army, which is the group of people who protect the country. General Waqar-uz-Zaman is the person in charge of the army in Bangladesh.
interim government -: An interim government is a temporary government set up to manage the country until a new, permanent government is chosen.
government job quota system -: A government job quota system reserves a certain number of jobs for specific groups of people. In Bangladesh, students are protesting against this system because they think it’s unfair.