39 Dead, Internet Blackout Imposed As Students Clash With Police

No fewer than 39 people have been killed in clashes between student protesters and riot police in Bangladesh, with 32 fatalities occurring on Thursday alone.

The protests erupted over demands to end a quota system that reserves over half of civil service posts for specific groups, AFP reports.

The violence has also left 104 police personnel and 30 journalists injured. The unrest, which has seen government buildings destroyed and widespread chaos, has prompted a nationwide internet blackout.

Thursday marked the deadliest day of the protests, with significant destruction reported across the country.

Many government buildings were torched or vandalized, including the Dhaka headquarters of state broadcaster Bangladesh Television, which remains offline after hundreds of students stormed and set fire to a building.

Faruk Hossain, a spokesman for the capital’s police force, told AFP that “about 100 policemen were injured in the clashes yesterday,” and that “around 50 police booths were burnt.” The police statement warned that continued destruction would lead to the “maximum use of law.”

Hospital staff have reported that police fire was the cause of at least two-thirds of the deaths. Clashes were reported in at least 26 districts across the country, with more than 700 people wounded, including 104 police officers and 30 journalists.

The protests, which have involved near-daily marches, are calling for the end of a quota system that critics say benefits children of pro-government groups backing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Hasina, 76, has ruled Bangladesh since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January, in a vote criticized for lacking genuine opposition.

Rights groups accuse Hasina’s government of misusing state institutions to maintain power and suppress dissent, including through extrajudicial killings of opposition activists. In response to the escalating unrest, the administration has ordered schools and universities to close indefinitely as police work to restore order.

Despite Hasina’s attempt to address the nation via the now-offline state broadcaster to calm the situation, students remain defiant. Protester Bidisha Rimjhim, 18, told AFP, “Our first demand is that the prime minister must apologise to us. Secondly, justice must be ensured for our killed brothers.”

The situation remains tense, with the death toll expected to rise as clashes continue in nearly half of the country’s 64 districts.
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