In a stunning capitulation, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday resigned amid violent protests against her rule and fled the capital city of Dhaka by helicopter as an angry mob stormed her official residence and the army announced an interim cabinet, the BBC reports.
Hasina, who had ruled since 2009 and in January had extended her regime in a rigged election, was reportedly headed to the Indian city of Agartala while Army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman was set to address the nation on the next steps for installing probably some sort of civilian puppet regime.
At least 300 people had been killed in violent clashes in recent weeks over what had began as a student-led protest against quotas in civil service jobs that had ended up metastasizing into a wider anti-government movement and nationwide unrest calling for Hasina’s resignation.