The army chief of Bangladesh, Waker-Uz-Zaman, announced that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has resigned after weeks of unrest. According to her aide, she fled the capital, Dhaka, by helicopter. That an interim government will be formed to run the country.
Following this announcement, on Monday, 5th of August, 2024, jubilant protesters stormed the palace of the Prime Minister shouting slogans, pumping their fists, and making victory signs. Thousands more took to the streets of Dhaka to celebrate the resignation of her 15 years in power.
Bangladesh’s Channel 24 broadcast images of the crowds running into the compound, waving at the camera in celebration.
Prior to the storming of the compound, Hasina’s son urged the country’s security forces to prevent any takeover from his mother’s 15-year rule. “Your duty is to keep our people and our country safe and uphold the constitution. It means don’t allow any unelected government to come to power for even one minute; it is your duty,” Sajeeb Joy, who is based in the United States, stated in a Facebook post.
Security forces had supported Hasina’s government throughout the unrest, which began last month over civil service job quotas and escalated into broader demands for her resignation.
Despite curfews and deadly force, protesters persisted. On Sunday, the deadliest day of the unrest, at least 94 people were killed, including 14 police officers. Protesters and government supporters clashed with sticks and knives, and security forces opened fire.
The total death toll since the protests began in early July has reached at least 300, according to an AFP tally based on reports from police, government officials, and hospital doctors.
On Saturday, Waker told officers that the military “always stood by the people,” according to an official statement. The military previously declared an emergency in January 2007 after widespread political unrest and installed a military-backed caretaker government for two years.
Hasina has ruled Bangladesh since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January after a vote without genuine opposition.
Human Rights groups accuse her government of misusing state institutions to entrench its power and suppress dissent, including through the extrajudicial killing of opposition activists.
The demonstrations began over the reintroduction of a quota scheme that reserved more than half of all government jobs for certain groups.
The protests continued despite the scheme being scaled back by Bangladesh’s top court. On Monday morning, soldiers and police in Dhaka barricaded routes to Hasina’s office with barbed wire, but vast crowds tore down the barriers and flooded the streets.
The Business Standard newspaper estimated as many as 400,000 protesters were on the streets, though this figure could not be verified.
