Bangladesh unrest: 32 dead, state TV headquarters set ablaze.
In a significant and devastating incident, an incensed crowd of Bangladeshi students set fire to the country’s state broadcaster, BTV, on Thursday. This violent act came a day after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina appeared on the network seeking to calm escalating clashes that have already resulted in at least 32 fatalities.
The unrest began as hundreds of protesters demanding reforms in civil service hiring rules clashed with riot police. The police, armed with rubber bullets, were quickly overwhelmed by the determined protesters who retaliated fiercely. The enraged crowd chased the retreating officers to the BTV headquarters in Dhaka, where they set ablaze the network’s reception building and numerous vehicles parked outside.
“Many people” were initially trapped inside the building as the fire spread, according to a Facebook post by the broadcaster. However, a BTV official later confirmed to AFP that everyone had safely evacuated the building.
In response to the escalating violence, Prime Minister Hasina’s government ordered the indefinite closure of schools and universities as police intensified efforts to restore law and order. The Prime Minister had appeared on the broadcaster the previous night, condemning the “murder” of protesters and promising that those responsible would face punishment, regardless of their political affiliation. However, her appeal for calm was ineffective as violence continued to surge on the streets. Police efforts to disperse the demonstrations using rubber bullets and tear gas were met with further resistance.
The death toll rose to at least 25 people on Thursday, in addition to the seven killed earlier in the week, bringing the total fatalities to 32. Hundreds more were wounded. Police weaponry caused at least two-thirds of these deaths, based on hospital descriptions provided to AFP.
“We’ve got seven dead here,” an official at Uttara Crescent Hospital in Dhaka, who requested anonymity due to fear of reprisal, told AFP.
Didar Malekin of the online news outlet Dhaka Times reported that Mehedi Hasan, one of their reporters, had been killed while covering the clashes in Dhaka. Several cities across Bangladesh experienced violence throughout the day as riot police confronted protesters who had initiated human blockades on roads and highways.
The near-daily marches have been fueled by demands to end a quota system that reserves more than half of civil service posts for specific groups, including children of veterans from Bangladesh’s 1971 liberation war against Pakistan. Critics argue that the scheme disproportionately benefits children of pro-government groups that support Hasina, who has ruled the country since 2009 and secured her fourth consecutive election win in January after a vote that lacked genuine opposition.
Her administration faces accusations from rights groups of capturing state institutions and suppressing dissent, including through the extrajudicial killing of opposition activists. Mubashar Hasan, a Bangladesh expert at the University of Oslo, noted that the protests have evolved into a broader expression of discontent with Hasina’s autocratic rule.
The unrest has also led to widespread mobile internet outages across Bangladesh, following earlier measures to restrict access to Facebook, the main organizing platform for the protest campaign. Junior telecommunications minister Zunaid Ahmed Palak stated that social media had been “weaponized as a tool to spread rumors, lies, and disinformation,” necessitating the government to impose these restrictions. Alongside police crackdowns, clashes have also erupted between demonstrators and students allied with the ruling Awami League, involving hurled bricks and bamboo rods.
As the situation continues to deteriorate, the government and authorities are under immense pressure to control the violence and address the demands of the protesters. The ongoing clashes and the aggressive response from the police and government highlight the deepening political crisis in Bangladesh and the urgent need for dialogue and reform to prevent further loss of life and restore peace and order.