Bangladesh was rocked by violent protests in several cities after the death of youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi late on Thursday, with concerns of further unrest ahead of national elections. Hadi, a spokesperson for the Inquilab Mancha platform and \u2060a candidate in general elections, was shot in the head by masked assailants last Friday while launching his election campaign in Dhaka. He \u200cwas initially treated at \u2060a local hospital before being flown to Singapore for advanced medical care, where he died after spending six days on life support. In Dhaka, videos circulating on social media showed mobs vandalising the \u200doffices of the country\u2019s largest daily newspaper, Prothom Alo, as well as the Daily Star. The demonstrations were marked by emotionally charged slogans invoking Hadi\u2019s name, with protesters vowing to continue their movement and demanding swift justice. Several areas remained tense, with additional \u2060police and paramilitary forces deployed to prevent further violence. Police did
not immediately comment, while the fire service said the blaze at the Daily Star was under control. Bangladesh has been governed by an interim administration led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus since August 2024, after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India following a \u200cstudent-led uprising. The government has been grappling with fresh protests over delayed reforms, and warnings of unrest by Hasina’s party, which has been barred from the vote, scheduled for February 12. In a televised address to the nation following Hadi\u2019s death, Yunus said: “His passing \u2060represents an irreplaceable loss to the nation’s political and democratic sphere.” Urging citizens to remain calm, Yunus said the government was committed to ensuring a transparent investigation and bringing all those responsible to justice. He also appealed for restraint, warning that violence would only undermine the country\u2019s path toward a credible election. The interim administration has declared Saturday a day of s
tate mourning \u2060in honour of Hadi, with national flags to be flown at half-mast and special prayers planned across the country. The home of the country\u2019s first president, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the father of Hasina, was vandalised and set on fire once again, after having been \u200dattacked twice previously in February and August last year. In Dhaka, the premises of the prominent Bengali cultural organisation Chhayanaut were vandalised and torched. In the northwestern district of Rajshahi, protesters demolished an Awami League party office using a bulldozer, while demonstrators blocked major highways \u200cin several other districts. Violence was also \u200breported in a number of cities \u200cacross Bangladesh, including the port city of Chittagong, where protesters attacked the Indian Assistant High Commission and set fire to a house belonging to a former Awami League education minister. The unrest follows fresh anti-India protests earlier in the week, with ties between the neighbours deteriorating \u200csince Hasi<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Bangladesh was rocked by violent protests in several cities after the death of youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi late on Thursday, with concerns of further unrest ahead of national elections. Hadi, a spokesperson for the Inquilab Mancha platform and \u2060a candidate in general elections, was shot in the head by masked assailants last Friday while […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n