In a statement on August 5, the President's press office said that a meeting chaired by Shahabuddin had "unanimously decided to immediately release the Chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Begum Khaleda Zia."
Attending the President's meeting were the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, General Waker-Uz-Zaman, along with the heads of the navy and air force and senior leaders of several opposition parties, including the BNP and the Jamaat-e-Islami party.
Former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia - Chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Photo: Reuters
Zia, 78, who served twice as Prime Minister of Bangladesh, is in poor health and hospitalized after being sentenced to 17 years in prison for corruption in 2018.
She has a long-standing feud with Hasina and is accused of abuse of power for embezzling approximately $250,000 in donations intended for an orphanage. The BNP claims these charges are fabricated and aimed at keeping Zia away from politics.
"The meeting also decided to release all those arrested during the student protests," the president's statement added.
Since last month, more than 2,000 people have been arrested in street protests against state job quotas, which quickly escalated into a nationwide demonstration demanding Hasina's resignation.
Nearly 300 people have died in weeks of protests. One night of deadly violence on August 4th left almost 100 dead, and a curfew was imposed to quell the demonstrations.
On August 5th, General Waker-Uz-Zaman announced that an interim government would be formed. The Bangladeshi military also stated that it would lift the curfew at dawn on August 6th and reopen offices, factories, and schools from 6:00 AM that same day.
Ngoc Anh (according to Al Jazeera)
Source: https://www.congluan.vn/tong-thong-bangladesh-ra-lenh-tha-cuu-thu-tuong-khaleda-zia-post306517.html
