The government imposed a curfew across the country for an indefinite period from midnight past Friday as at least 67 people were killed on Friday taking to 112 the death toll in the past four days of protests for reform of quota in government job.
鈥楥urfew will come into effect from midnight past Friday in keeping with the law鈥ilitary forces will remain deployed across the country in aid of the civil administration to ensure security of the people鈥檚 life and property of the state,鈥� said ruling Awami League general secretary Obaidul Quader.
Quader, also the road transport and bridges minister, made the announcement at a briefing after a meeting of the AL-led alliance at Ganabhaban minutes before the imposition of the curfew.
He said that the alliance requested prime minister Sheikh Hasina at the meeting for stern steps to protect life of the people and property of the state as the government accepted in principle the demand of the quota protesting students.
He said that the law enforcers would follow 鈥榮hoot at sight鈥� during the curfew prohibiting movement of the public.
Hasina chaired the meeting with the alliance leaders amid a volatile situation due to clashes that flared across the country between the student protesters and members of the law enforcement agencies along with AL activists turning the capital into a horrific city in the past five days.
An organiser of the student protests in a text message called on the people to observe ongoing 鈥榗omplete shutdown鈥� spontaneously.
鈥楾he government has imposed curfew in the face of resistance by students and citizens to contain their spontaneous movement. We call on the people to observe the shutdown programme spontaneously,鈥� said Abdullah Shaleheen Ayon, co-coordinator of the student movement, in the message.
He also urged the army not support this government and rather stand by the human rights of the students and citizens.
Home ministry public relations officer Sharif Mahmud said that the government had already issued a gazette notification imposing the curfew.
He said that there would be a two-hour brake in curfew from Saturday noon to聽 allow public movement during the time.
As per the decision, emergency services would, however, remain out of the purview of the curfew.
The decision came in another meeting between the prime minister Sheikh Hasina and chiefs of law enforcement agencies at her Ganabhaban residence Friday night.
The military troops would operate under the deputy commissioners in respective districts to maintain order.聽
The prime minister also cancelled her Spain visit that was scheduled for July 21.
The curfew was imposed after at least 67 people were killed on Friday, mostly in Dhaka, on the second day of the ongoing 鈥榗omplete shutdown鈥� as clashes erupted between protesters and law enforcers accompanied by the ruling Awami League activists in capital and many other places across the country.
Deaths included 35 bodies received by Dhaka Medical College Hospital, 10 received by Shahid Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital, 10 received by Farazy Hospital in Rampura, four received by Mitford Hospital in Dhaka.
Kuwait Bangladesh Friendship, Mugda General Hospital and LabAid Hospital in Dhaka received one dead body each.
In addition to that, two deaths were reported in Rangpur, one each in Savar, Sylhet and Narsinghdi till filing this report at 10:30pm, according to 抖阴精品 correspondents.
112 deaths in four days
With this, the death toll in two days of complete shutdown enforced by Students Movement against Discrimination, a platform of anti-quota movement, reached 105 in the country. Seven other people died on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Several thousand people were injured during four days of violent protests across the country.
Dhaka city turned into a battlefield with protesters clashing with police, ruling AL and its associate bodies in several places on roads and its alleys, including Badda, Rampura, Mohammadpur, Asad Gate, Science Laboratory, Dhanmondi, Nilkhet crossing, Purana Paltan, Uttara and Jatrabari.
Members of the law enforcement agencies were seen throwing tear shells from over the sky using helicopters in many residential areas, including Kuril, Badda, Rampura, Banasree and Dhanmondi-27 to disperse the protesters.聽聽
Many residents of the areas said that they were panicked witnessing such incidents for the first time in life.聽
People also suffered as government kept mobile internet and broadband internet connections shut down for more than 24 hours.聽聽
Dhaka Metropolitan Police also banned plying of motorcycles in the city citing public safety concerns.
During Friday鈥檚 agitation, demonstrators set fire on different government entities or vandlised those in a situation of complete lawlessness.
The government entities that came under attack included headquarters of Directorate General of Health Services and Bangladesh Road Transport Authority in Dhaka, two metro rail stations in Mirpur area and a toll plaza of the Dhaka Elevated Expressway in Mohakhali area in Dhaka.
Several offices of the Police Bureau of Investigation police stations and police boxes also came under attack in places across the country.
The protesters also did the same with the offices of ruling AL and its affiliated organisations and offices of public representatives, including zila parishad chairmen, mayors and councillors.
Many of the victims included bystanders, such as Dulal Mahmud, a private bank employee, who was shot by police during a clash between police and protesters on Thursday night in the capital鈥檚 Azimpur Government Colony at about 9:00pm.聽
Dulal died at about 4:00am on Friday while undergoing treatment at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.
Witnesses said that police fired him from short distance when he was returning to home after offering Esha prayers.
Addressing a rally on Bangabandhu Avenue in the capital on Friday, ruling Awami league general secretary Obaidul Quader said that prime minister Sheikh Hasina had instructed the law enforcement agencies to handle the evil forces with iron hand.
In Rampura areas, Border Guard Bangladesh was seen firing from an APC, witnesses said.
The entire area from Rampura bridge to Kuril Biswaya Road turned into a battle ground as the law enforcers were throwing tear shells from the sky.聽
Dhaka Metropolitan Police has banned all meetings and rallies in the city except in front of the ruling AL and the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party central offices in the capital.
The government has deployed 250 platoons BGB.
Rapid Action Battalion gave round over the sky through helicopters to monitor the situation.
Clashes began in the Mohammadpur area on Friday in the morning and continued till 7:00pm, said witnesses.
They said that protesters set fire to two Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation buses.
The clash between protesters and police continued in and around Nilkhet crossing throughout the day.
Students torched traffic police box at Katabon area as the situation turned violent at Science Laboratory crossing to Katabon.
In Savar, on the outskirts of the capital, protesters blocked Dhaka-Aricha Highway at Genda, Thana Stand and Savar Bus Stand area.
Police charged baton and fired rubber bullets from shotguns, leaving at least 50 people injured.
In the capital鈥檚 Purana Paltan and Baitul Mokkaram National Mosque areas, clashes between police and protesters took place for several hours intermittently that left several protesters, two photojournalists Masud Parvez Milon and Azizur Rahman Sumon, injured.
Over 900 inmates of the Narshingdi district jail broke free on Friday as complete anarchy descended on the district where angry protesters set government offices on fire and blocked the Dhaka-Sylhet highway.
The protesters also confined local AL leaders to their residences, 抖阴精品 correspondent in the district reported.
Most of the government and private health facilities in Dhaka were flooded with injured patients.
The country鈥檚 biggest health facility DMCH emergency department was flooded with gunshot injured, including a six-year-old male child.
Blood soaked bodies in DMCH
The rush of gunshot injured, many in critical conditions, and dead bodies started to reach the hospital after jumma prayer at about 2:00pm.
BGB forces took position in DMCH at about 5:00pm to 鈥榤aintain security of the hospital.鈥櫬�
People carried blood soaked injured in rickshaw, CNG and ambulances and the hospital corridor was turned red due to blood of the injured.
Brains of two dead bodies were seen burst out of their skull and the other bodies bore marks of gunshots.
The hospital lacked stretchers and wheelchairs to carry patients.聽聽
On Monday, a BCL attack on quota protesters on the Dhaka University campus and other places left about 400 injured, triggering anger and anguish.
Clashes erupted on Tuesday as students and protesters returned to the street, in some places ready to fight back if attacked, leaving six people killed on the day.
Protests began on July 1 following a High Court order on June 5 asking the government to restore 30 per cent quotas for the descendants of freedom fighters in public services.聽聽
Amid turmoil in the country, prime minister Sheikh Hasina sat with the 14-led alliance leaders and the chiefs of law enforcement agencies at her official residence Ganabhaban in the evening.聽
The home ministry in a release on Thursday evening requested all concerned to refrain from violence.
Otherwise, the law enforcement agencies would apply maximum use of laws to protect lives and properties of the people, the ministry warned.
Vandalism in Rangpur
抖阴精品 correspondent in Rangpur reported that vandalism and fire incidents took places at different places of the city.聽
Protesters set fire on two booths of Sonali Bank and Dhaka Bank, and Somoybay Market.
Additional Deputy Commissioner of Rangpur Metropolitan Police, Saifuzzman Faruki said that outsiders carried out vandalism and arson attacks on different establishments.
Clashes in Chattogram
抖阴精品 staff correspondent in Chattogram reported that the chases and counter chases also took places between the police and protesters at different parts of the city on Friday.
The anti-quota protests started after jumma prayer at Andarkilla Mosque in the port city and gradually spread in other areas, including New Market, Kazir Dewri, Jamal Khan and Laldighi areas.
The BNP held a rally in support of the quota reform movement in front of the party office in Kazir Dewri in the morning peacefully.
At least 30 people were arrested in connection with seven cases filed with Chandgaon, Bakolia, Khulshi and Panchlaish police stations over violence, said Kazi M Tarique Aziz, additional deputy commissioner of Chittagong metropolitan police.
The showdown of ruling party people was also seen at few areas in the city. Almost all the shops of the port city were found closed amid fear of violence centering the quota protest movement.
BNP leaders injured in Barishal
Meanwhile, 抖阴精品 Barishal correspondent reported that AL leaders and activists on Friday carried out an attack on BNP leaders and activists during a rally arranged by the BNP at Tonmoy community centre in Barishal city.
At least six BNP people including the city BNP president and secretary general were injured. BNP leader Sanwar Hossain Sanu with serious injury was sent to Dhaka for better treatment.
Agitated students seeking quota reform on Friday blocked the Barishal-Kuakata highway in front of the Barishal University.
The AL supporters held a rally in front of Barishal Nagar Bhaban while the party leaders and activists with arms paraded through different places in Barishal city, led by AL city general secretary Sadek Abdullah.
Photojournalist dies in Sylhet
In Sylhet, a photojournalist of local The daily Jalalbad Md Torab Hossain died at Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital while undergoing treatment at the hospital after sustaining bullet injury during a clash between police-BNP people in Sylhet city.
The hospital police outpost in-charge Zafar Imam said that the critically injured journalist was admitted to the hospital before he died.