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Bangladesh’s prime minister flees country and resigns after deadly protest

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Sheikh Hasina. File pic: Reuters
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Bangladesh’s prime minister has resigned and fled to India following weeks of deadly protests in the country.

Reports of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, 76, resigning were confirmed by the army, as well as Bangladesh High Commission Officials in Delhi.

According to the country’s leading national paper, Ms Hasina, who led the country for 15 years, and her sister took a military helicopter to India.

The former prime minister is taking “safe shelter” away from her official residence, the news agency Reuters says, amid reports of it being stormed by protesters.

A shopping center was set on fire by protesters during a rally against Ms Hasina on Sunday. Pic: AP

At least 95 people, including at least 14 police officers, died in clashes in the capital on Sunday, according to local news, while hundreds more were injured.

Soldiers on armoured vehicle patrolling Dhaka last month. Pic: AP

 

At least six people were reportedly killed in clashes between police and protesters in the Jatrabari and Dhaka Medical College areas on Monday.

The demonstrations began with students seeking to end a quota system for government jobs, but clashes with police and pro-government activists escalated into violence that left more than 200 dead last month.

Sunday’s protests saw people calling for justice for victims of deadly clashes. Pic: AP

That triggered more protests demanding accountability from the government, which have grown into calls for Ms Hasina, who has been leading the country since 2009, to step down.

Ms Hasina is reported to have fled the country as anti-government protesters vowed to march to the capital to demand her resignation on Monday.

Broadband internet and mobile data services have been restored across Bangladesh after a blackout.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

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EPL: Details of Salah’s new contract revealed

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Liverpool forward, Mohamed Salah, has signed a new contract with the Premier League side.

The Reds announced the deal on Friday, ending speculations surrounding the 32-year-old’s future.

Salah was set to become a free agent in the summer and was attracting attention from Paris Saint-Germain and Saudi Arabia.

But he has put pen to paper on a two-year contract worth £380,000 per week.

According to Mail Sport, Liverpool have broken a golden rule in offering Salah a new deal.

The owners Fenway Sports Group have a history of not handing out new contracts to players over 30.

A contract offer had been on the table for a while, but Salah and his agent, Ramy Abbas, demanded a better deal.

It is understood that the player initially wanted a three-year extension, and while FSG have not given him that, they have broken their traditional policy by offering him a new deal at his age.

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White House replaces Obama portrait with painting depicting Trump assassination attempt

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A portrait of US President Trump that depicts him raising his fist immediately after the attempt on his life last July at a Bulter, Pa., rally is replacing an image of former President Barack Obama in a prominent spot inside the White House.

White House deputy chief of staff, Dan Scavino posted side-by-side photos on social media of the Trump artwork seemingly replacing the Obama painting on Friday at the bottom of the Grand Staircase.

The artwork of Trump shows him bloodied with an American flag waving behind him after he survived the assassination attempt last year.

The image of Trump appeared to take the place of a portrait of Obama that was unveiled at the White House in 2022.

The life-like portrait by artist Robert McCurdy shows Obama sporting a black suit and grey tie in front of a white background.

The white background, the White House said at the time, “allow the viewer to establish a relationship with the subject.”

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Declare state of emergency on security, economy – Ndume tells Tinubu

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The lawmaker representing Borno South Senatorial District, Ali Ndume, has urged President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency on the nation’s security and economic sectors.

Ndume made this call on Friday during an interview on ‘Politics Daily’, a programme on Channels Television, where he also criticised the President’s declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State.

“Let the President forget about everything and concentrate on three things – security, welfare of citizens and the economy.

“His attention should go there as number 1, then he should create a state of emergency in those areas,” he stated.

While describing himself as a democrat, Ndume said Tinubu’s declaration of emergency in rule in Rivers was surprising.

According to him, the President acted in a wrong move by that action on March 18 following the protracted political crisis in the state.

Recall that in a nationwide broadcast, Tinubu suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu and all the members of the House of Assembly for six months.

To replace Fubara, the president nominated Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas (rtd) as administrator to take charge of the affairs of the state for the first six months.

Tinubu relied on Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution to make the proclamation.

Ekwutosblog reports that the section interprets a state of emergency as a situation of national danger, disaster or terrorist attacks in which a government suspends normal constitutional procedures to regain control

However, Ndume stated that he expected the President to have gathered the political actors and resolve all lingering differences rather than the proclamation.

The lawmaker also denied claims that the political actors ignored Tinubu’s directives prior to the emergency rule imposition.

 

“I feel that the President would have worked seriously on bringing them (and) solving the problem than (declaring a state of emergency). Call them, seat them down and say ‘go and sort your problem.

“How can you ignore the President? When he removed them now, did they ignore the removal?” Ndume queried.

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