Bangladesh President Orders Release of Khaleda Zia

Bangladeshi President Mohammed Shahabuddin yesterday ordered the release of jailed former prime minister and key opposition leader Khaleda Zia, just hours after her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina was ousted and the military took control.

In a statement, the president's press team announced that a meeting led by Shahabuddin had "decided unanimously to free Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia immediately."

The meeting included Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman, as well as the heads of the navy and air force, and top leaders of several opposition parties, including the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami.

"The meeting has also decided to free all the people who have been arrested during the student protests," the statement added.

Earlier in the day, General Waker addressed the nation on state television, announcing Hasina's resignation and the military's plan to form a caretaker government.

"The meeting decided to form an interim government immediately," he added.

Hasina had been struggling to suppress nationwide protests against her government since early July. She fled the country after brutal unrest on Sunday in which nearly 100 people were killed.

Khaleda Zia, 78, is in poor health and confined to a hospital after being sentenced to 17 years in prison for graft in 2018.