INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Dozens of people have been killed and hundreds injured as renewed anti-government protests swept across Bangladesh, with protesters calling
Bengali-language daily newspaper, Prothom Alo, said at least 95 people, including at least 14 police officers, had died on Sunday in the
according to Reuters news agency.The military announced that a new curfew, including in the capital, Dhaka, and other divisional and
district headquarters, would come into effect on Sunday evening for an indefinite period
The government had earlier imposed a curfew with some exceptions in Dhaka and elsewhere.Demonstrators are demanding the resignation of the
prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, after protests last month that began with students calling for an end to a quota system for government jobs
Those demonstrations escalated into violence that left more than 200 dead.As the renewed violence raged, Hasina said the protesters who
Bangladesh Nationalist party and the now banned Jamaat-e-Islami party.On Sunday, 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.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.Video footage on Sunday showed protesters vandalising a prison van at the chief metropolitan magistrates court in
Other videos showed police opening fire on the crowds with bullets, rubber bullets and teargas
Some carried sharp weapons and sticks, according to TV footage.View image in fullscreenA garment store on fire in Dhaka
Photograph: Abu Sufian Jewel/AFP/Getty ImagesThe Jamuna TV channel reported that violent clashes took place across more than a dozen
police fired teargas 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
Crude bombs were detonated and gunshots fired, witnesses said
At least 20 people in the area were hit by bullets.The protests began last month as students demanded an end to a quota system that reserved
system also sets aside jobs for disabled people, transgender people and members of ethnic minorities, whose quotas were cut from a
violence.Hasina offered to talk with student leaders on Saturday, but a coordinator refused and announced a demand for her resignation.The
protests have become a major challenge for Hasina, who has ruled the country for more than 15 years
She returned to power for a fourth consecutive term in January in an election that was boycotted by her main opponents.With Associated Press
This article first appeared/also appeared in theguardian.com
