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July 22, 2024. – The Dhaka Metropolitan Police reported that more than 500 people have been arrested since the start of student protests in Bangladesh, as the country continues to be mired in violent clashes since last week.
A spokesman for the capital’s police said they had so far arrested 532 people for taking part in the protests, including several arrested by investigating officers, but he did not provide a specific figure.
Besides the students, those arrested included Ami Hasrud Mahmood, one of the leaders of the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the spokesman added.
Students declare truce
Meanwhile, student leader Nasheed Islam announced that considering the “big picture”, they had decided to suspend the demonstrations in the country for 48 hours, which have so far left more than a hundred people dead and more than half a thousand detained.
Islam announced the decision to the media after the Supreme Court on Sunday scrapped public employment quotas in favor of students, a move protesters denounced as discriminatory.
However, students are now calling for an investigation into the more than 100 deaths recorded at the hands of police during the protests, mostly students and civilians.
Death toll exceeds 100
Police have not yet announced the death toll from the conflict, but EFE news agency has currently confirmed that 130 people have been killed and more than 500 others have been injured.
Local media Protom Al reported the death toll as 174. But the government has not yet provided official figures in this regard.
Faced with the volatile situation, the government suspended mobile and internet communications on Thursday night and imposed a curfew from Friday midnight to Saturday. It also deployed the Army in key areas to ease tensions.
The situation led the government to relax the curfew on Monday, allowing people to go out to obtain basic supplies between 2:00 pm and 5:00 pm local time (8:00-11:00 GMT).
The student protests, which began in early July, are the biggest mobilisation Hasina has faced since she took office in January for a fourth straight term in an election boycotted by the opposition.
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