Editor's Pick | Hasina resigns, flees Bangladesh as protests surge

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, in power for the past 15 years, resigned and fled the country by helicopter on August 5, following weeks of unrest in which more than 300 people have been killed. Bangladesh will now have an interim government. Ms. Hasina landed at the Hindon Air Force station near Delhi later in the day. Ms. Hasina has requested asylum from the U.K and is expected to stay in India for a night or two before the request is granted. She is accompanied by her sister Rehana, who holds U.K. citizenship, sources told The Hindu. In Dhaka, Army Chief Gen. Waker-Uz-Zaman confirmed Ms. Hasina’s resignation in an address to the nation. He urged protesters to stop the unrest and pledged to meet their demands. He promised that he would speak to the President on the matter of forming the interim government. The Chief said he had spoken with the main Opposition parties and civil society members, but not with Awami League, Ms. Hasina’s party. He is expected to also meet with protesting student leaders. “I am taking full responsibility. If the situation gets better, there is no need for an emergency. We hope to go towards a better situation together. The country has suffered a lot, the economy has been hit, and many people have been killed. It is time to stop the violence,” he said. Thousands gathered at various points in Dhaka on August 5, defying a curfew order, as a part of the ‘March to Dhaka’ campaign demanding Ms. Hasina’s resignation, called by the Students Against Discrimination. Police could not hold the crowd for long as numbers swelled on the streets. Around 3 p.m. local time, protesters breached the police barricades and the gates of the Gonobhaban, the Prime Minister’s official residence, entering the premises. A source close to Ms. Hasina confirmed that she wished to record a speech before leaving the residence, but could not do so as a large crowd had already gathered. She was taken along with her sister to a motorcade and was told that they must not waste time. The security team took her to the Second World War-era airport at Old Tejgaon and was airlifted in a Mi-17 helicopter. In Agartala, they reportedly transferred to a C-130. The BAF C130J first hovered over Kolkata and then flew to Hindon Air Force station, sources said. National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Chief of the Indian Air Force Western Air Command Air Marshal P.M. Sinha have met Ms. Hasina at Hindon. The Hindu’s Editorials On the edge: On West Asia and the danger of a wider war On target: On the Olympics and Indian shooters The Hindu’s Daily Quiz Which article of the Constitution deals with dismissal, removal, or reduction in rank of civil servants without a departmental inquiry? Article 311 Article 370 Article 270 Article 42 To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 06 August 2024 [The Hindu logo] [EP Logo] Editor's Pick 06 August 2024 In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [View in browser]( [More newsletters]( Hasina resigns, flees Bangladesh as protests surge [Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina]( in power for the past 15 years, resigned and fled the country by helicopter on August 5, following weeks of unrest in which more than 300 people have been killed. Bangladesh will now have an interim government. Ms. Hasina landed at the Hindon Air Force station near Delhi later in the day. Ms. Hasina has requested asylum from the U.K and is expected to stay in India for a night or two before the request is granted. She is accompanied by her sister Rehana, who holds U.K. citizenship, sources told The Hindu. In Dhaka, Army Chief Gen. Waker-Uz-Zaman confirmed Ms. Hasina’s resignation in an address to the nation. He urged protesters to stop the unrest and pledged to meet their demands. He promised that he would speak to the President on the matter of forming the interim government. The Chief said he had spoken with the main Opposition parties and civil society members, but not with Awami League, Ms. Hasina’s party. He is expected to also meet with protesting student leaders. “I am taking full responsibility. If the situation gets better, there is no need for an emergency. We hope to go towards a better situation together. The country has suffered a lot, the economy has been hit, and many people have been killed. It is time to stop the violence,” he said. Thousands gathered at various points in Dhaka on August 5, defying a curfew order, as a part of the ‘March to Dhaka’ campaign demanding Ms. Hasina’s resignation, called by the Students Against Discrimination. Police could not hold the crowd for long as numbers swelled on the streets. Around 3 p.m. local time, protesters breached the police barricades and the gates of the Gonobhaban, the Prime Minister’s official residence, entering the premises. A source close to Ms. Hasina confirmed that she wished to record a speech before leaving the residence, but could not do so as a large crowd had already gathered. She was taken along with her sister to a motorcade and was told that they must not waste time. The security team took her to the Second World War-era airport at Old Tejgaon and was airlifted in a Mi-17 helicopter. In Agartala, they reportedly transferred to a C-130. The BAF C130J first hovered over Kolkata and then flew to Hindon Air Force station, sources said. National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Chief of the Indian Air Force Western Air Command Air Marshal P.M. Sinha have met Ms. Hasina at Hindon. The Hindu’s Editorials [Arrow][On the edge: On West Asia and the danger of a wider war]( [Arrow][On target: On the Olympics and Indian shooters]( The Hindu’s Daily Quiz Which article of the Constitution deals with dismissal, removal, or reduction in rank of civil servants without a departmental inquiry? - Article 311 - Article 370 - Article 270 - Article 42 To know the answer and to play the full quiz, [click here](. 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